Class ( /fZ^^\ 
Book J f\C 



THE WHY AND WHEREFORE 

OF 

BRIDGE 



THE WHY 
AND WHEREFORE 

OF 

BRIDGE 

BY 

G. T. ATCHISON 

AND 

A. J. G. LINDSELL 



LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. 
39 PATERNOSTER ROW, LONDON 
NEW YORK AND BOMBAY 
1905 

A II rights reserved 



By Exch£n^.e 
Army end Navy Club 
JANUARY 16 1934 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

vii 



Laws of Bridge i 

Etiquette of Bridge 20 

Scoring 23 

Declarations 24 

(A) By the Dealer 24 

(1) No Trumps 26 

(2) Suit Declarations .... 30 

(a) Hearts 30 

(b) Diamonds 32 

(c) Clubs 33 

(d) Spades 34 

Defensive Declarations ... 34 

(B) By the Dealer's Partner ... 36 

(C) Declarations to the Score ... 38 
Doubling and Redoubling .... 43 
The Original Lead 49 

(A) Against a No Trump Declaration . 50 

(B) Against a Suit Declaration ... 57 

(C) When the Declaration has been 

Doubled 64 



Preface 



vi CONTENTS 

PAGE 

The Play of the Second Hand ... 68 

The Play of the Third Hand ... 74 

The Play of the Fourth Hand ... 77 

Playing Dummy 79 

(A) Without Trumps 79 

(B) When there are Trumps ... 84 
Playing against Dummy ..... 88 

The Eleven Rule 94 

Calling and Discarding . . . . .96 

The Spade Convention 108 

Three-handed or Cut-throat " Bridge . 109 



PREFACE 



IT may be safely asserted that never in the 
annals of card-playing has any game attained 
such a speedy and widespread popularity as Bridge. 
Once known, it carried all before it, and has long 
since relegated every other known form of cards to 
a suburban seclusion. Proficiency at the game 
has become a positive social qualification. We 
have more than once heard it said, I should like 
to ask So-and-so, but he doesn't play Bridge." As 
an after-dinner amusement it has the strongest 
claim on the world's gratitude for having ousted 
the terrors of ping-pong. It is the recreation of 
the busy and the business of the idle ; indeed, we 
do not doubt that, but for Bridge, many of the 
latter class would have succeeded in passing 
through life without ever using their brains at all. 

Long ago Talleyrand replied to the young man 
who boasted that he did not play Whist, Quelle 
tri te vieillesse vous vous preparez." But, were he 



viii PREFACE 

now alive, and Bridge the game in question, he 
assuredly would not limit his prophecy to the 
scoffer's declining years. Some few malcontents 
there be who still remain obdurate in the face of 
all these testimonials, but they may safely be 
allowed to gnash their teeth in the outer darkness 
which they have chosen, and to fulminate their 
grievances against the tyranny" of the game in 
the ever-sympathetic columns of the halfpenny 
papers. It is not with such that we are concerned, 
but with the ever-growing multitude who, seeing 
that in Bridge, and Bridge alone, lies their claim 
to consideration from their fellow-mortals, have 
wisely determined to bow the knee to Baal. To 
these neophytes, while offering our congratula- 
tions on their good sense, we must at the same 
time address a word of warning. The mysteries 
of Bridge are not to be lightly undertaken. An in- 
judicious *^No Trump'' call has blighted the happi- 
ness of many a home, and though in the present 
benighted state of the law a revoke cannot success- 
fully be pleaded as a ground for a judicial 
separation, we have little doubt that in this respect 
things are better ordered in America. Let no one 
therefore imagine that a smattering of Whist and 



PREFACE ix 

the knowledge that there are five declarations are 
a sufficient outfit for the game, and that the rest 
may be left to be picked up somehow in the course 
of play. Not that we under-estimate the value of 
practice to the beginner. At Bridge, as elsewhere, 
an ounce of it is worth its proverbial weight of 
theory. But while theory without practice is as 
faith without works, the converse holds equally 
true. There are a number of points acquaintance 
with which, and with the reasons for them, is 
essential to any intelligence of play. To grasp 
these a certain amount of book lore is indispens- 
able. Herein lies our excuse for adding to the 
already considerable output of literary matter on 
the subject. Many admirable treatises have been 
compiled by men whose boots, as Bridge-players, 
we are unworthy to clean. But these authorities 
all have their pet theories on many of the most 
vital points of the game, and it may well happen 
that the neophyte finds that the views, which he 
has laboriously imbibed, do not pass current in 
the circles in which he is cast. Such divergences 
of opinion are most regrettable in the interests of 
the game, but as yet no Cavendish has arisen in 
the Bridge world, and, until that most desirable 



X PREFACE 

consummation, we cannot hope for any uniformity 
of play. We have therefore endeavoured to col- 
late the principal theories on each point, and, 
while indicating our preference for one or another, 
to state fairly the case for its rivals, leaving the 
final choice to the discretion of the reader. More- 
over, while it is both difficult and undesirable to 
advance any radically new theories on the subject, 
it appeared to us, after perusing most of the 
standard works, that there was room for a con- 
siderable amount of explanation. Facts without 
motives are notoriously bald and unconvincing, 
and it has been our aim in every case to give the 
reasons for the course of play suggested, and to 
emphasize the principle rather than its particular 
corollary, devoting special attention to those 
points which experience has shown us to be most 
generally misapprehended. 



THE 

WHY AND WHEREFORE 

OF 

BRIDGE 

THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 

We do not propose to set out at full length all the 
Laws of the Game of Bridge as laid down in the 
Club Code, but rather to state all the essential 
ones in simpler words. The code to which we 
refer is that adopted by the Portland and Turf 
Clubs (revised 1904), and may be obtained any- 
where. 



The rubber is the best of three games, each Number of 
game consisting of thirty points obtained by tricks cui^Code 
alone; but any points over thirty scored by the ^ ^ 3 
winners are counted when reckoning the total. 

B 



2 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



4. The value of each trick above six varies accord- 
ing to the declaration made at the beginning of 
each hand. 

Each trick above six when Spades are trumps counts 2 points. 
j> >> >> >> »j Clubs 4 
,, ,, ,, Diamonds ,, 6 ,, 

>) j> »> >» >> Hearts 8 
,, ,, there are No Trumps 12 

5. Honours, when a suit has been declared trumps, 
are Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and Ten ; while the 
four Aces are Honours when there are No 
Trumps. 

6. When a suit has been declared trumps, Honours 
are scored by the side holding them as follows : — 

(a) Three Honours score twice the value of the odd trick. 

(b) Four four times ,, ,, „ 

(c) Five five ,, ,, ,, ,, 
{d) Four Honours in 

one hand eig-ht ,, ,, ,, ,, 

(e) Four Honours in 
one hand, and 

the fifth in the " "^"^ " " " " " " 
partner's 
(/) Five Honours in 

one hand ,, ten ,, ,, ,, ,, 

7. When there are No Trumps, Honours are 
scored by the side holding them as follows : — 

(a) Three Aces score 30 by Honours. 

(b) Four ,, ,, 40 ,, ,, 

(c) Four Aces in one hand 100 ,, 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 3 

Chicane, or holding no trump card in a hand 
when a suit has been declared trumps, is reckoned 
as twice the value of the odd trick by the side 
holding Chicane. 

Double Chicane, or neither partner holding a 
trump card when a suit has been declared trumps, 
is reckoned as four times the value of the odd 
trick by the side holding Double Chicane. 

Note. — Chicane and Double Chicane are 
reckoned as Honours. 

Grand Slam, or winning all thirteen tricks 
independently of any tricks taken for the revoke 
penalty, counts 40 by Honours. 

Little Slam, or winning twelve tricks, inde- 
pendently of any tricks taken for the revoke 
penalty, counts 20 by Honours. 

Note, — The scores for Honours, Chicane, and 
Slam are not affected by any doubling which may 
take place under laws 53-9. 

At the end of the rubber the total points scored 
by each side for tricks. Honours, Chicane, and 
Slam are added up. After 100 points have been 
added to the winners' score for the rubber, the 
losers' points are subtracted from the winners', 



4 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

and the difference is the number of points won or 
lost by the winners of the rubber. 

Note. — The winners of the rubber may lose 
on points. 

14-18. In cutting to form the table, the four who cut 
lowest play. These four cut again for partners, 
the two highest playing against the two lowest. 
The lowest has first deal, choice of seats and 
choice of cards. In cutting the Ace counts 
lowest. Every player must cut from the same 
pack, and any one exposing more than one card 
must cut again. 

19. If two players cut cards of equal value, inter- 
mediate between the highest and the lowest, these 
two cut again. The higher in the new cut plays 
with the original highest against the lower in the 
new cut and the original lowest. The original 
lowest has the deal, etc. 

If the two lowest cut cards of equal value, they 
play together, but cut again for deal, etc. 

20. If three players cut cards of equal value, they 
cut again. Should the fourth player cut the 
highest, the highest in the new cut plays with 
him, and the lowest in the new cut has the deal, 
etc. Should the fourth player cut the lowest, he 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 5 

has the deal, etc., and plays with the lowest in the 
new cut. 

Each player has the right to shuffle the pack, 30? 33- 
the dealer having the right to shuffle last. 

The player on the dealer's right cuts the pack, 35. 
not leaving less than four cards in either packet. 
There must be a new deal — 39. 
{a) If at any time during the hand the pack 

is proved incorrect. 
{b) If any card is found faced in the pack. 
{c) If the cards are not dealt singly into four 
packets in regular rotation, beginning 
with the player on the dealer's left. 
{d) If any player has more, and another less 

than thirteen cards. 
{e) If the dealer omits to have the pack cut, 
and the adversaries discover the error 
before looking at their cards or before 
the last card is dealt. 
iV<9/^.-— There is no misdeal at Bridge; the same 
player deals again. 

If, while dealing, either of the adversaries faces 40. 
a card, the dealer or his partner may, without con- 
sultation, claim a new deal. If the dealer or his 



6 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



partner faces a card, either of the adversaries, 
without consulting his partner, may claim a new- 
deal. If no new deal is claimed, the card faced 
cannot be called. A claim for a new deal cannot 
be made by a player who has looked at any of his 
cards. 

Note, — There is no ground for the superstition 
that a player may refuse to take a card faced in 
dealing and demand another. His only remedy 
is a fresh deal. 

43- Should three of the players have thirteen cards 
and the fourth have less than thirteen, and not dis- 
cover the deficiency until he has played any of his 
cards, the missing card is deemed to be part of 
the fourth player's hand, and he is liable for any 
revoke he may have made before discovering such 
deficiency. He may search for the missing card 
in the other pack or elsewhere. 

45- Any one dealing out of turn, or with the wrong 
pack, may be stopped before the last card is dealt ; 
but after this the deal stands good, and the game 
proceeds as if no mistake had been made. 
47, 48. The dealer, after examining his hand, has the 
option of declaring either No Trumps or a suit as 
trumps, or else of leaving the declaration to his 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 7 

partner, saying, ^' I leave it to you, Partner." His 
partner, when the declaration is left to him, must 
either declare No Trumps or some suit as trumps. 

If the dealer's partner makes the declaration 49- 
without permission from the dealer, the eldest hand 
may demand — 

{a) That the declaration stands good ; or, 

{h) That there shall be a new deal. 

If, however, there has been any declaration as 
to doubling or not doubling, or if a new deal is 
not claimed, the declaration made shall stand. 

If the dealer's partner passes the declaration to 50- 
the dealer, the eldest hand may demand — 

{a) That the dealer's partner shall make the 
declaration himself ; or, 

ih) That there shall be a new deal. 

If either of the dealer's adversaries makes a 51- 
declaration, the dealer may, after looking at his 
hand, either claim a fresh deal or proceed as if no 
declaration had been made. 

A declaration once made cannot be altered, 52. 
except as provided above. 

The player on the dealer's left has the first right 54. 
to double. If he does not wish to do so, he asks, 



8 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



*'May I lead?" If his partner does not wish to 
double, he replies, '*Yes." 

55. If either the player on the dealer's left or his 
partner doubles, the declarant hsis the first right to 
redouble, and after him his partner. If the declar- 
ant does not wish to do so, he says, Satisfied," 
and his partner either redoubles or says the same. 

56 If either the declarant or his partner redoubles, 
the player who doubled has the right to redouble 
again, and after him his partner. 

57. If the player on the dealer's right doubles before 
his partner has asked, May I lead? " the declar- 
ant has the right to say whether the double shall 
stand or not. If he decides that the double shall 
stand, then redoubling may be continued as 
described in laws 55, 56, 58. 

58. The process of redoubling may be continued 
until the limit of 100 points is reached, the player 
who last redoubled having the first right to re- 
double at their subsequent opportunity. 

Should any player redouble out of turn, the 
adversary who last doubled shall decide whether 
that redouble shall stand or not. If it is decided 
that such redouble shall stand, the process of re- 
doubling may be continued as described above. 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 9 

If any double or redouble is not accepted, there 
shall be no further doubling in that hand. Any 
consultation between parties as to doubling or re- 
doubling shall entitle the declarant, or the original 
leader, as the case may be, without consulting his 
partner, to claim a fresh deal. 

If the player on the dealer's left leads before 59. 
doubling is completed, his partner may redouble 
only with the consent of the adversary who last 
doubled ; such a lead, however, does not affect 
the right of either adversary to double. 

A declaration once made cannot be altered. 61. 

As soon as a card is led, whether by the right or 62. 
the wrong adversary, the dealer's partner places 
his hand face upwards on the table. The dealer 
conducts the entire play of the hand, claiming and 
enforcing any penalties that may arise during the 
hand, unassisted by his partner. 

After exposing Dummy, the dealer's partner 63. 
may take no part in the game beyond 

{a) Playing the cards from Dummy which the 

dealer names to be played. 
{b) Asking the dealer if he has no card of a suit 

to which he has played void. 
Note. — Never omit to do this. 



lo WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



If the dealer's partner calls attention to any 
incident for which the dealer may exact a penalty, 
then by doing so he causes the dealer to lose that 
right. 

Note, — Dummy may not make a claim for a 
revoke. 

64. If the dealer's partner in any way suggests the 
play of any card from Dummy's hand, then either 
of the adversaries, but without consulting his 
partner, may call upon the dealer to play or not to 
play the card suggested. 
, 66. A card once played by any one can only be taken 
back to save a revoke except as provided in laws 
82-94. 

A card is deemed to be played by the dealer or 
Dummy as soon as he has named it, but should he 
detach a card from his or Dummy's hand without 
naming it, it is not deemed to be played until his 
hand has quitted it. 

Note, — There is nothing in the rules to justify 
the widespread belief that a card may be taken 
back provided it has not been covered. 

67. Dummy must not look over either his adver- 
saries' or his partner's hands. 

68. Should Dummy revoke, there is no penalty. If 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 



II 



the error is not discovered until the trick is turned 
and quitted, the trick stands good. 

The dealer is not liable to any penalty for ex- 69. 
posing any or all his cards, after a declaration has 
been made, since he has no partner who can profit 
by the information. Any card, however, that he 
has actually played cannot be taken back except 
to save a revoke. 

A card exposed by the dealer or his partner 70- 
after the deal has been completed but before a 
declaration has been made, entitles the original 
leader, without consulting his partner, to claim 
a new deal. 

Note. — The difference between rule 40 and rule 
70 should be carefully noted. 

A card exposed after the deal has been com- 71. 
pleted but before a card has been led, causes the 
partner of the offending player to lose his right 
to double or redouble. If the leader's partner ex- 
poses a card, then the dealer may, instead of 
calling the card, require the leader not to lead 
the suit of the card exposed. 

The following are exposed cards, and if they 72, 73? 78- 
belong to the dealer's adversaries, must be left face 
upwards on the table, and are liable to be called. 



12 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

(a) Two or more cards played at once. 

{b) Cards dropped face upwards on the table 
(but not on the floor or below the table), 
even though picked up so quickly that no 
one can name them. 

(c) A card detached from the hand of either of 
the dealer's adversaries, so as to be named 
by the dealer. Should the dealer name 
a wrong card, his adversaries may call 
a suit as soon as he or Dummy obtains 
the lead. 

75. Should the dealer declare that all, or any, of the 
remaining tricks are his, he may be required to 
place his cards face upwards on the table, but is 
not liable to have them called. 

76. Should either of the dealer's adversaries throw 
his cards face upwards on the table, these cards 
are exposed, and are liable to be called by the 
dealer. 

79. If a player, who has rendered himself liable to 
have the highest or lowest of a suit called, or to 
win or not to win a trick, or to have a lead from 
a suit called, fails to play as directed, though able 
to do so, he incurs the penalty of a revoke. 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 13 

If either of the dealer's adversaries leads out of 80, 81. 
turn, the dealer may either call the card so led, or 
call a suit when it is next the turn of either of the 
adversaries to lead. The dealer incurs no penalty 
for leading out of turn from either his or Dummy's 
hand, but he may not rectify the error after the 
second hand has played. 

If a player leads out of turn, and the mistake is 82. 
not discovered until all the four players have 
played, the mistake cannot be corrected ; but if 
all four have not played, the cards are taken 
back, and only the original leader incurs a 
penalty, and then only if he is one of the dealer's 
adversaries. 

A card cannot be called from a player which 83, 84. 
would compel him to revoke. The call may 
be repeated until such card can correctly be 
played. 

Should a player have a suit called, and have 85. 
none of the suit, the penalty is paid. 

Should the third hand not have played, and 86. 
the fourth hand play before his partner, the latter 
(not being the dealer or Dummy) may be called 
upon to win or not to win the trick. 

If any one (other than Dummy) omits to play to 87. 



14 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

a trick, and the error is not discovered until he 
has played to the next trick, the adversaries may 
claim a new deal. Should they decide that the 
deal stands good, or should the player so offend- 
ing be Dummy, the surplus card at the end of the 
hand is considered to have been played to the 
imperfect trick, but cannot constitute a revoke 
therein. 

88. If any one plays two cards to a trick, or mixes 
a card to a trick to which it does not properly 
belong, and the mistake is not discovered until 
the hand is played out, he (not being Dummy) is 
liable for all the consequent revokes he may have 
made. If the error is detected during the play 
of the hand, the tricks may be counted face 
downwards in order to discover whether there 
is among them a card too many ; should this 
be the case, they may be searched, and the 
card restored ; the offending player (not being 
Dummy) is liable for all revokes he may have 
meanwhile made. 

89. To revoke is to hold a card of the suit which is 
led and to play a card of another suit. Dummy 
cannot revoke. 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 



15 



The penalty for a revoke 90. 
{a) Is at the option of the adversaries, who 
viay, Sit the end of the hand, consult 
together^ and either 
(i) Take three tricks from the revoking 

side and add them to their own ; or 
(ii) Deduct the value of three tricks from 

their adversaries' score ; or 
(iii) Add the value of three tricks to their 
own score. 

{h) Can be claimed for each revoke in the 
hand ; 

(c) Is only applicable to the score of the par- 
ticular game in which it occurs ; 
{d) Cannot be divided. 

{e) In whatever manner the penalty is en- 
forced, the offending side may never 
score Game, Grand Slam, or Little 
Slam on that hand. No matter what 
their score was previously, the offend- 
ing side cannot advance their score 
towards the game beyond 28. 

Note.— YoM may consult your partner 
before exacting the penalty for a revoke. 



i6 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



Note, — Many players often fail to take 
the most profitable penalty for a revoke. 
The crux of the matter lies in section 
{e) above. If by adding the value of 
three tricks to your score you can 
reach 30, always do so, for, however 
many your opponents may have made, 
they cannot raise their score above 28 
on that hand. 

In other cases you will have to use 
your judgment. If it is your deal next, 
take the penalty in the form that will 
advance your score the furthest ; if it 
is your adversaries' deal next, in the 
form that will keep theirs back as far as 
possible. 

Note, — If one side wins ten (or nine) 
tricks, and their adversaries revoke, by 
taking three tricks they win seven (or 
six) odd tricks, but do not score Grand 
(or Little) Slam (see rule 9). 

A revoke is completed if the trick is turned 
and quitted, or if either of the revoking side 
leads or plays to the following trick, whether in 
or out of turn. 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 17 

A player may, and always should, ask his 92. 
partner whether he has not a card of the suit to 
which he has played void. If a player asks this 
question before the trick is turned and quitted, the 
revoke is not complete until the revoking player 
has replied in the negative or until either player of 
the revoking side has played or led a card to the 
following trick. 

Note, — Never omit to ask this question. The 
usual form is, Having no Spade, Partner?" or 
whatever is the suit to which he has renounced. 

At the end of the hand the claimants of a revoke 93- 
may search all the tricks. 

If a player discovers his mistake in time to save 94, 95- 
a revoke, any player who has played after him 
may withdraw his card and play another, and the 
card so withdrawn is not liable to be called. If 
the offending player is one of the dealer's adver- 
saries, the dealer may call the card thus played in 
error, or may require him to play his highest or 
lowest card to that trick in which he has renounced. 
If the offending player is the dealer, the eldest hand 
may require him to play the highest or lowest card 
of the suit in which he has renounced, provided 

that both the dealer's adversaries have played to 
c 



i8 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

the current trick ; but this penalty cannot be ex- 
acted from the dealer if he is fourth player, nor 
can it be enforced at all from Dummy. 

Note. — The reason for this penalty against the 
dealer not being enforceable when he is fourth 
player is that in such case he has not learned the 
position of a certain card, which might not have 
been revealed had he not offended. 

96. If a revoke is claimed and the accused player or 
his partner mixes the cards before they have been 
sufficiently examined by the adversaries, the revoke 
is established. 

97. A revoke cannot be claimed after the cards have 
been cut for the next deal. 

99. If a player on each side revokes, the penalties 
are exacted as before. Neither side can score 
Game on that hand. 

loi. Any player may demand that the cards be placed 
before their respective players at any time before, 
but not after, they have been touched for the 
purpose of gathering them. 

Note, — Avoid asking, Whose trick is it?" 
or such-like question. You are only entitled to 
have the cards placed before their respective 
players. 



THE LAWS OF BRIDGE 19 



If either of the dealer's adversaries calls atten- 102. 
tion to the trick, before his partner has played, 
either by saying that it is his, or by naming his 
card, or without being required to do so, by draw- 
ing his card towards him, the dealer may require 
that opponent's partner to play his highest or 
lowest of the suit then led, or to win or lose the 
trick. 

Should the partner of any player solely entitled 103. 
to exact a penalty suggest or demand the enforce- 
ment of it, no penalty can be enforced. 

Whenever a penalty has been incurred, the i°4. 
offending side is bound to give reasonable time 
'for the decision of their adversaries. 

Once a trick is complete, turned, and quitted, it 108. 
must not be looked at (except under law 88) until 
the end of the hand. 



20 



ETIQUETTE OF BRIDGE 

Even more important than the written are the 
unwritten laws of Bridge. The reason lies in 
the fact that they are more frequently violated 
than the hard-and-fast rules that are laid down in 
so many words. 

The weakest point of the game is that the 
system of declarations opens up great possibilities 
of conveying unfair intimations to your partner 
as to the state of your hand. Consequently you 
cannot be too careful in your manner of declaring 
or passing. 

Look through your hand deliberately on all 
occasions, making up your mind as you do so. 
To declare or to pass at first sight is a distinct 
intimation to your partner that your hand is either 
obviously strong or weak ; while to hesitate and 
show perplexity before passing is tantamount to 
telling your partner that you hold cards upon 
which you are nearly, but not quite strong enough 



ETIQUETTE OF BRIDGE 21 

to declare. We do not wish to imply that the 
Dealer's partner is justified in taking advantage 
of such information. Far from it. He has as 
much time as the Dealer to look at his hand, and 
should always endeavour to make up his mind as 
to the correct declaration before it is left to him. 

Above all, do not hesitate about doubling. Unless 
you finally do so, it is grossly unfair to give the 
faintest indication of such an intention. Hesita- 
tion over declaring may bear more than one 
construction, but an obvious desire to double can 
only mean considerable strength. Nineteen times 
out of twenty such hesitation indicates either 
great strength in plain suits and weakness in 
trumps, or great strength in trumps and weakness 
in plain suits. Your partner will in all probability 
be able to judge which of these is the case from 
his own and Dummy's hands, and yet has to play 
all through the hand, feeling bound in honour not 
to take any notice of this information. The 
reputation of the game, and also your own re- 
putation, depend upon strict probity in this 
respect. 

Never intimate to your partner by word or 
gesture that a trick is won until he has played to 



22 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

it. If he wishes to know how the cards have 
been played, he may ask to have them placed, but 
no information may be volunteered. An equally 
undesirable habit of some players is to play a 
winning card down with a bang by way of 
emphasizing its calibre. 

Never play a card down and then snatch it 
up again, remarking that it has. not been covered. 
The rules state the direct opposite to this wide- 
spread superstition. Once played, a card cannot 
be recalled except to save a revoke, and in that 
case it must be left on the table as an exposed 
card, unless it has been played by the Dealer 
or his partner. Do not put your opponents in 
the invidious position of having to insist on their 
rights. 

Do not talk about your hand before or during 
the play. 

Do not take it as a personal insult when your 
partner leaves it to you, and your only possible 
declaration is Spades. Still less should you 
imagine you have a grievance when your partner 
calls Spades himself either originally or when it 
has been left to him. 



23 



SCORING 

Do not consider the scoring a sordid detail quite 
unworthy of your attention. The whole raison 
d'etre of Bridge lies in the diverse values of the 
various declarations, and a thorough knowledge of 
these is essential to a sound game. Hellespont " 
rightly says that there are three things which 
should always be taken into consideration before 
declaring : (i) The score, (2) the possibility of mak- 
ing game, (3) Honours. Always inquire the state 
of the score before the beginning of a hand, or, if 
you are scoring yourself, it is a good habit to call 
it for the benefit of your partner. This should, 
however, always be done before or during the 
course of the deal, and the player cannot be too 
careful to avoid volunteering such information 
after the cards have once been picked up, as under 
some circumstances such a practice is open to 
suspicion. 



24 



DECLARATIONS 

These naturally fall under two heads : — 

(A) Declarations by the Dealer. 

(B) Declarations by the Dealer's partner. 

(A) DECLARATIONS BY THE DEALER 

The great art of declaring is to steer a middle 
course between rashness and timidity. Some 
players will never leave it to their partner if they 
have the faintest excuse for going No Trumps or 
a red suit. Others will not declare unless they see 
half a dozen tricks in their own hand. The first 
kind lives in deadly terror of his partner making 
Spades (a call which these players would gladly 
see abolished), while the second appears to be 
under the impression that the odds are consider- 
able on his partner holding a carte blanche." 
The same error is responsible for both excesses. 
You must not consider your partner at all. The 
most and the least you are entitled to expect from 



DECLARATIONS 



25 



him is average strength. Estimate your hand 
solely on its own merits, and you will seldom go 
wrong. 

The Dealer, as the original declarant, is pri- 
marily the attacking arm. His first business, 
therefore, on looking at his hand, is to see if he 
can make such a declaration as may reasonably be 
expected to advance the score to game. In default 
of this, he must next consider whether any declara- 
tion is open to him which will probably result in a 
greater score than any his partner is likely to be 
able to make. To this end, as remarked above, 
he must be thoroughly conversant with the score, 
and must declare to it alone. However small the 
trick value, he is bound to declare any suit which 
will make a certainty of the game. 

It is, however, impossible to lay down maxims 
for every combination of the score. The only 
way is to give advice which may profitably be 
followed when the score is at love-all, and to point 
out a few modifications which arise when either 
party is within a few points of the game. The 
many doubtful cases which crop up in the course 
of a rubber must be left for their decision to indi- 
vidual ingenuity and experience. 



26 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



Original declarations by the Dealer must be 
divided into 

(1) No Trumps. 

(2) Suit Declarations. 

(l) NO TRUMPS 

This declaration is, according to the circum- 
stances, both the easiest and the most difficult to 
decide upon. Some No Trump hands are obvious 
as such to any one who is not playing his first 
rubber, but there are many others which, though 
recognised No Trump calls, do not carry prima 
facie conviction. It is, therefore, of great im- 
portance to have some knowledge of the hands 
which the experience of the leading exponents of 
the game has stamped as worthy of the highest 
honours. 

All the following hands are jeu de regie No 
Trumpers. Hands containing— 
{a) Four Aces. 

ih) Three Aces, unless the fourth suit consists 
of (i) six Hearts, (ii) seven Diamonds, in 
which case declare the Hearts or Dia- 
monds respectively. 



DECLARATIONS 



27 



(c) Two Aces, two Queens, and either one Jack 

or two Tens, with three guarded suits. 

(d) Average strength with three guarded suits 

and in addition an extra Ace, or King, 
or Queen, or two extra Jacks. The Ace 
should not be alone. Average strength 
for this purpose consists of one Ace, one 
King, one Queen, one Jack, and one Ten. 

(e) Six or more certain tricks in Clubs or Spades 

and another Ace. Six cards of a suit to 
a Quart Major or seven of a suit to a 
Tierce Major may be reckoned as certain 
tricks. A difficult hand to decide is one 
similar to case (e) above, but, instead of the 
second Ace, containing a King, Queen 
suit. On such a hand, personally, we 
always go No Trumps at love-all, but it 
is open to argument that the risk is too 
great. 

if) Without an Ace, No Trumps should only 
be declared at love-all with four guarded 
suits and a hand containing eight picture 
cards, seven of which should be Kings or 
Queens. 



28 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



To hand {a) above there is no exception under 
any circumstances. The honour score of one 
hundred, and the absolute certainty of a trick in 
every suit from the one hand, are sufficient to 
warrant a No Trump declaration, no matter what 
the remaining nine cards may be. 

To hands (^), (c), {d), (e), (/) there is one univer- 
sal exception. Holding four or five Honours in 
Hearts or Diamonds, declare the red suit at love- 
all for the sake of the honour score, even if the 
hand is an exceptionally strong No Trumper, 
unless of course you have four Aces as well. 

In addition to the above hands, which do not as 
a rule present any great difficulty, you are some- 
times dealt hands which are not quite up to the 
standard of the above, but which seem too good 
to leave to your partner. An example of such a 
hand is one which contains one Jack above the 
average, three guarded suits, with four Hearts and 
four Diamonds. Here the red suits may be too 
weak to declare originally, but sufficiently strong 
to render the probability of your partner being 
able to declare them very remote. On such a 
hand go No Trumps, and trust to your partner 
to hold cards that will fit well with your own. 



DECLARATIONS 



29 



In the above paragraphs we have used the term 
'^guarded suit," and some explanation is necessary. 
An Ace is a guard in itself, but its value is vastly 
diminished if it is a singleton. A King must be 
backed by the Queen or at least two other cards. 
In reckoning the strength of a hand for the pur- 
pose of a No Trump declaration, a Queen should 
be considered merely as a guard to the King and 
not as contributing to the strength of the hand, 
unless there is also another card of the suit. 
A Queen should be supported by either (i) Jack 
and one small one, or (2) three small ones. A Jack 
is guarded when accompanied by three other 
cards, of which one should be the Ten or the Nine. 

Do not be afraid of one unguarded suit. The 
weaker it is, the greater is the probability of your 
partner holding some strength in it. Remember 
that the advantage of playing the two hands is 
far greater in No Trumps than in any other 
declaration, while the call has a nameless terror, 
which often exercises an appreciable effect on your 
opponent's play. Our advice is, when io doiibt 
whether to go No Trumps or not--go No Trumps. 



30 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 
(2) SUIT DECLARATIONS 

Should the Dealer decide, on examining his 
hand, that it is unfitted for the No Trump declara- 
tion, he then has to consider whether it will be 
probably more profitable for him to declare a suit, 
or to leave the declaration to his partner. He 
should remember that by declaring a suit he 
deprives his partner of the chance of making 
the more expensive, and probably more profitable, 
call of No Trumps, in which, as we mentioned 
above, the advantage of playing the two hands 
is considerably accentuated. There are, however, 
a great number of hands, unfitted for No Trumps, 
on which it would be little short of criminal to 
ignore the excellent chances of appreciably ad- 
vancing the score, on the shadowy chance of a 
possible No Trump call by your partner. It is 
with these hands that we are now concerned. 

{a) Hearts 

We have already mentioned two hands upon 
which the Dealer should declare Hearts at the 
score of love-all, namely — 

(i) Hands containing three Aces, the fourth suit 
consisting of six Hearts. 



DECLARATIONS 



31 



(2) No Trump hands, not containing four Aces, 

but containing four Honours in Hearts. 
Under this latter heading we may con- 
veniently reckon any hand containing 
four Heart Honours as being a sound 
Heart declaration at love-all. 
Other hands on which the Dealer should declare 
Hearts at love-all are — 

(3) Four Hearts, three of them Honours headed 

by Ace, King, and four Diamonds, three 
of them being Honours. But go No 
Trumps on a hand of this description if 
it comes nearly, but not quite, up to any 
of the standards laid down on the previous 
pages. 

(4) Five Hearts, two of them being Honours 

(one of the Honours should be Ace, King, 
or Queen), with a hand that looks good 
for five tricks with Hearts trumps, but 
which is unfitted for a No Trump call, 
owing to there being two unguarded suits. 

(5) Six Hearts with less than two Honours, if 

there are two tricks outside Hearts. 

(6) Seven Hearts, even if you have no cards in 

your hand higher than a Ten. 



32 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

Hearts should never be declared originally at 
love-all with less strength than described above. 
It is a very common fault among Bridge-players 
to make suit declarations on hands that are too 
weak and to fail to make No Trump calls on 
hands that do not appear at first sight strong 
enough, but which would really be perfectly sound 
declarations. 

{h) Diamonds 

It may be safely asserted that there is no declara- 
tion over which Bridge-players make more mistakes 
than that of Diamonds. They are apt to forget 
that at love-all eleven tricks are necessary to make 
game, and that eleven tricks are very hard to get, 
while there are two better calls open to their 
partner. Hence we are of the opinion that a light 
Diamond call at love-all is the worst of all declara- 
tions. 

We have already mentioned under the heading 
of No Trumps two hands upon which Diamonds 
should be called — 

(i) Hands containing three Aces, the fourth suit 
consisting of seven Diamonds. 



DECLARATIONS 



33 



(2) No Trump hands, not containing four Aces, 

but containing four Honours in Diamonds. 
Under this latter heading we may con- 
veniently reckon any hand containing 
four Diamond Honours as being a sound 
Diamond declaration at love-all. 

Other hands upon which the Dealer should de- 
clare Diamonds at love-all are — 

(3) Five Diamonds, three of them Honours, or 

five Diamonds to Ace, King, and a hand 
that looks good for five tricks with Dia- 
monds trumps, but which is unsuitable 
for No Trumps owing to having two un- 
guarded suits. 

(4) Six Diamonds, with less than three Honours 

if there are two tricks outside the Dia- 
monds. 

(5) Seven Diamonds, even if you have no cards 

in your hand higher than a Ten. 

(c) Clubs 

Club declarations by the Dealer at love-all are 
very rare, and are only permissible as an offensive 
measure when they are from great strength both in 



34 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

Honours and numbers. Such strength must con- 
sist of at least six Clubs with four Honours. 

Be careful not to declare Clubs on a hand falling 
under heading {e) of the No Trump declarations. 

{d) Spades 

Spades should never be declared offensively by 
the Dealer with the score of love-all. 

DEFENSIVE DECLARATIONS 

It will be noted that under the Club and Spade 
headings we have qualified our remarks by the 
use of the word offensive." As methods of 
attack by the Dealer with the score at love-all, Club 
calls are rarely and Spade calls are never em- 
ployed. If, however, the Dealer finds that his 
hand is extremely weak, he must take steps to 
prevent his side being totally routed on a probable 
high-valued call by his partner. The weaker the 
Dealer is, the more probable it is that his partner 
will be strong, and hence in a position to make an 
expensive declaration. Under these circumstances 
it is the Dealer's duty to prevent such a call by his 
partner, foredoomed as it is to failure, by making 
some declaration himself. 



DECLARATIONS 35 

If the Dealer has less strength than is indicated 
by one guarded King or two guarded Queens, he 
must declare Spades, unless he has either (i) seven 
Hearts, (2) seven Diamonds, (3) six Clubs, or 
(4) five Clubs, including either the Queen or the 
Jack, Ten. 

In the exception (i) he will declare Hearts, 
(2) Diamonds, and (3) or (4) Clubs. 

There are many people who object to this prac- 
tice on the ground that it is admitting yourself to 
be beaten before you have been actually defeated. 
This argument is perfectly true, and even more 
valid is the objection that by admitting your weak- 
ness you enable your opponents to finesse deeply 
against you with every confidence. The argument 
in favour of these defensive declarations is that the 
Dealer has no trick in his own hand, and by leaving 
the declaration to his partner, he is relying on the 
latter to have a hand sufficient to make seven 
tricks on its own merits. Such a hand is as rare 
as beating the opposing eleven off your own bat. 
This consideration alone is sufficient to make it 
compulsory for the Dealer to make some declara- 
tion himself as a defensive measure when his hand 
is so weak. 



36 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

There is one final maxim on suit declarations. 
When in doubt whether to declare a suit or leave 
it to your partner— leave it to your partner. 

If you are contemplating a doubtful Heart 
declaration, and your partner, when you leave it to 
him, declares Spades, console yourself by remem- 
bering the occasions when you left it on doubtful 
Diamonds and made three tricks on your partner's 
No Trump call. 

(B) DECLARATIONS BY THE DEALER'S 
PARTNER 

The Dealer's partner, when it is left to him, has 
a much freer hand in declaring. The Dealer has 
intimated by passing that his strength is not 
sufficient to make a really profitable attacking 
declaration, and yet is sufficiently great to render 
a purely defensive declaration by him unneces- 
sary. He is, therefore, entitled to expect from 
the Dealer the same assistance as is noted above 
in considering the original declarations, namely, 
average strength ; and the deduction to be made 
from the pass is, that the Dealer has no great 
strength in Hearts, Diamonds, or all round, and 
no overwhelming strength in Clubs. 



DECLARATIONS 37 

Any of the declarations previously prescribed 
for the Dealer are equally sound when made by 
the Dealer's partner. Suit Declarations on a pass 
may, however, be made on rather less strength 
than is required by the Dealer, but No Trump 
declarations by the Dealer's partner must be fully up 
to standards laid down on the preceding pages. 

The minimum strength required for an attack- 
ing suit declaration on a pass may be estimated as 
four morally certain tricks in a hand containing 
four trumps with three Honours, or five trumps 
with two Honours. On less strength than this, 
declare Spades unless you have either (i) seven 
cards of a red suit, (2) six Clubs, or (3) five Clubs 
to the Queen or Jack, Ten. 

Never declare Clubs or a red suit on inadequate 
strength because Spades are so dull." The 
spice of interest you propose to add to the game 
will usually be increased by a double from your 
opponents. If you are unable on a pass to make 
a sound attacking declaration, it stands to reason 
that your opponents will probably get the odd 
trick on any call, and to run risks is merely to 
invite your opponents to score Game on your deal 
and to place them in a favourable position for 



38 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

winning the rubber, perhaps on their succeeding 
deal. 

Do not forget that your hand has to go down on 
the table, when its weakness will be exposed to 
your opponents, who will thus be able to take 
a much stronger line than when playing in the 
dark against a declaration by the Dealer. This 
should be especially remembered if you are con- 
templating a rather light No Trump declaration 
on a pass, when such a hand will very likely be 
badly cut up by being led through. 

(C) DECLARATIONS TO THE SCORE 

As we have remarked above, every declaration 
should be made to the score, but it is impossible 
to deal with every case that may arise in the 
course of the rubber. There are, however, two 
positions which demand special attention. 

The first is when the declarant's side is ahead, 
and within reasonable sight of Game. In such 
cases it is obvious that no risks should be run and 
the original declarant should declare any suit, 
even Spades, in which he holds sufficient strength 
to ensure a practical certainty of going out. The 



DECLARATIONS 39 

same tactics are, of course, equally obligatory on 
the Dealer's partner, but we purposely mention 
the Dealer, because some players are still under 
the impression that it is almost criminal to make 
an original Spade declaration at any state of the 
score. 

Always, when there is any doubt, prefer the suit 
which will most conveniently with safety take you 
out; e.g., with your score at 22, holding strength 
in Hearts, declare them rather than No Trumps if 
there is one unguarded suit. At love-all, or with 
your score at 6 or 18, No Trumps would probably 
be your best declaration, but as you are merely 
playing for the odd trick, the greater security of 
the suit declaration should be decisive. 

At the score of 22 Hearts should also be pre- 
ferred to Diamonds, even though slightly weaker, 
because one trick less is necessary to make Game. 
If, however, the score be 24, Diamonds would be 
the correct declaration, as, if the odd trick in 
either of two suits will take you out, the least ex- 
pensive should, ceteris paribus^ be chosen. 

In such cases as these, when the odd trick only 
is needed, suits may be declared on considerably 
less strength than prescribed as necessary at love- 



40 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

all, especially in the case of Diamonds with the 
score at 24. The minimum trump strength quoted 
above for a Heart declaration at love-all may be 
taken as an ample standard for any suit declaration 
under these circumstances. 

The second case which justifies a departure from 
the ordinary rules of declaration is when you are 
behindhand, and your opponents are within a 
few points of the rubber — not, we would add, 
within a few points of Game. To declare desper- 
ately, except at the last moment, is the height of 
folly, as, by giving your opponents a chance of 
making Game on your deal, the odds on their 
winning the rubber are vastly increased. 

In this case the original declarant should always 
go No Trumps if possible, not only for the sake 
of the trick value, but also in consideration of the 
greater advantage which that declaration affords 
to the player of the two hands. Unless his 
partner has a fair hand, the game is up in any 
case, while, if he does prove strengthening. No 
Trumps is the best possible call. 

For these reasons he should go No Trumps on 
hands weaker than those prescribed for such a 
declaration at love-all. A frequent instance of 



DECLARATIONS 41 

such a hand is one containing two strong and two 
very weak suits. 

If No Trumps is out of the question, the 
Dealer should pass unless he sees a really great 
chance of Game in some suit declaration. Hearts 
should not be declared without considerable 
strength. Under these circumstances the ordi- 
nary standards are insufficient, and Hearts should 
be fully up to the strength required for a Diamond 
declaration at love-all. Diamonds should very 
rarely and Clubs or Spades never be declared. 
Fair cards in Hearts, or very powerful cards in 
Diamonds, Clubs, or Spades, are a better excuse 
for going No Trumps than for declaring the suits 
in question. 

The Dealer's partner, when it is left to him, 
must naturally act on the assumption that the 
above-mentioned rules have been followed. There- 
fore he must never declare No Trumps except on a 
hand which is well up to the standard of a No 
Trump declaration at love-all. With Hearts the 
case is totally different. The Dealer has only 
intimated that he has no great strength in the 
suit, but he may hold fair cards, perhaps cards 
upon which he would have declared Hearts at love- 



42 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

all. The Dealer's partner can but hope for the 
best, and must take the only chance left to him by 
declaring Hearts if he has a shadow of strength 
in the suit. Four Hearts with one high Honour, 
or five with or without an Honour, are sufficient, if 
accompanied by one certain trick in plain suits. 
Failing this, declare the suit that seems most 
likely to avert any considerable loss of points. 



43 



DOUBLING AND REDOUBLING 

The chief kind of legitimate double is the double 
to the score: e.g. (i) When your opponents need 
only one trick in the suit declared to make Game, 
but you need two; (2) when one doubled trick 
will take your score to Game, but will not do so 
for your opponents. On these and similar occa- 
sions, holding fair strength in trumps, and suffi- 
cient good cards in other suits to ensure about 
five tricks in all on your own hand, a double is 
sound. With less than four trumps a declaration 
should very rarely be doubled, unless the trick- 
making power of your plain suits is very high 
indeed. It is of little use in such a case to rely 
on long plain suits, however strong the cards com- 
posing them may be, as they will in all proba- 
bility be trumped on the second or third round. 
Double rather on short suits with Aces and Kings. 
If, however, you are strong in trumps, a long. 



44 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

strong plain suit is of the greatest value. If the 
declarant outnumbers you in trumps, it is most 
useful in forcing out his surplus, while with equal 
or greater strength such a suit is almost sure to 
bring you in several tricks. 

Another serious consideration in doubling is the 
position of the declarant. If he is on your right, 
double without fear on the strength specified 
above ; but, if the positions are changed, con- 
siderably more caution should be exercised, as 
many strong cards will be rendered valueless for 
trick-making purposes by the declarant sitting 
over you ; and, having proclaimed strength, you 
are sure to be heavily finessed against. Conse- 
quently, be careful in such cases that your hand 
is not one that can be seriously cut up if led 
through. 

Beware, when doubling, of relying to any 
extent on assistance from your partner. A sound 
offensive declaration and a sound double (espe- 
cially in No Trumps) leave very little for the other 
two hands. 

A defensive call may, of course, be doubled 
with greater freedom, as in this case you are 
generally entitled to assume that the bulk of the 



DOUBLING AND REDOUBLING 45 



making cards are distributed between yourself and 
partner. Do not, however, get into a mechanical 
habit of doubling every time Spades are declared. 
Redoubled they are worth 8 a trick. The Dealer 
also should beware of redoubling Spades declared 
by his partner, as it is generally a faute-de-mieux 
call, and cannot be taken as indicating any strength 
in the suit. Still more should Dummy beware of 
redoubling Spades declared by the Dealer, as 
such a call indicates absolute weakness on his 
part. 

The doubling of No Trumps is a more difficult 
matter. The trick value being so high and one 
suit as good as another, no risks should be taken. 
The original leader to double No Trumps must 
(except with great all-round strength, which is 
highly improbable) hold one long, strong suit. 
If this suit is of such calibre as to ensure six or 
more tricks in itself without stoppage, the com- 
position of the rest of the hand is of little im- 
portance. If not, and one trick is almost sure to 
be lost in establishing it, sound cards of re-entry 
in two other suits are essential. 

In either case the position of the original leader 
is a strong one. 



46 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

If, however, your partner has the first lead, 
there is no such certainty. All he can do is to 
make a blind shot at your suit, which may result 
in disaster. In consequence of this risk, the 
convention has arisen that the leader's partner 
should only double on a hand that, provided his 
suit is led to him at once, is good for six or 
more tricks. 

Unfortunately there are two conventions as to 
the original lead to such a double. The first is 
the lead of a Heart, which renders success certain, 
but restricts doubling to great strength in, or 
possession of the Ace of that suit. The second is 
the lead of the highest card of the original leader's 
weakest suit, provided it does not include Ace, 
King, or Queen. This gives greater freedom, but 
no certainty that the suit so led will be the right 
one. 

Of the two systems, the Heart Convention is 
the one now more generally adopted on account 
of its certainty. 

As an example of disaster that may result from 
a double when playing the Short Suit Convention, 
we can remember seeing a game in which the 
Dealer had a hand with great strength in Hearts, 



DOUBLING AND REDOUBLING 47 



Clubs, and Spades upon which he declared No 
Trumps, holding no Diamonds. The leader's 
partner held the nine top Diamonds and doubled ; 
the remaining four Diamonds were in Dummy's 
hand and the dealer secured Grand Slam in No 
Trumps doubled, the original leader opening with 
a Club. Of course, a solitary instance cannot be 
conclusive, but we certainly think the more popu- 
lar Heart Convention is correct. In any case, be 
certain that you settle with your partner before 
the commencement of play which convention you 
intend to follow, and adhere to it. 

From the considerations noted above, it may 
be laid down as a safe maxim that No Trumps 
should never be redoubled except upon an absolute 
certainty. 

All the above-mentioned doubles have been 
assumed to be made to the score. In our opinion 
the only other legitimate double is the double on 
a certainty. The mere point-raising double so 
often resorted to by inexperienced players cannot 
be too strongly deprecated, and gives occasion to 
the enemies of Bridge to brand it as a gambling 
game. It will invariably be found that the higher 
the standard of play, the less frequent are the 



48 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

doubles. Those players who cannot rest content 
with ordinary points would do well to return to 
Poker and cease to involve their partners' finances 
in their wild-cat speculations. 



49 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 

The original lead is a matter of great importance. 

In the majority of cases the Dealer is in the 
strong position of having a declaration made for 
attacking purposes, in addition to his advantage 
of having full knowledge of the strength of the 
forces under his command. The leader therefore 
must make the most of his privilege of being 
allowed to make the first move in the cam- 
paign which is about to commence. His tactics 
will vary greatly according to circumstances. So 
greatly do they differ when the declaration of No 
Trumps has been made from those to be employed 
when a suit has been declared, that we must 
divide the question of original leads into the two 
headings — 

(A) Against a No Trump Declaration. 

(B) Against a Suit Declaration. 

To which we must add a third heading — 

(C) When the Declaration has been doubled. 

E 



50 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



(A) AGAINST A NO TRUMP DECLARATION 

Although at first sight this is the easier case 
owing to there being one well-recognized policy, 
it is in reality by far the harder, owing to the 
numerous circumstances that necessitate variations 
in the method of carrying out this policy. Unless 
your partner has doubled, the original lead against 
a No Trump declaration must always be from your 
longest suit. 

The reason is obvious. Since there is no suit 
which has more extensive trick-making powers 
than the other three, the game resolves itself into 
a struggle between the rival parties to be the first 
to establish a suit, and thus to enable the small 
cards of this suit to make tricks at the expense 
of the higher cards held by the adversaries in the 
other suits. 

Having discovered his longest suit (and clearly 
in cases of equality in length, the strongest will 
be selected), the leader is confronted with the 
difficult problem of how best to establish it. The 
first question to settle is whether to lead a high 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 



51 



card or a low one. Obviously the lead of a high 
card will clear the suit more quickly ; but in such 
a case after two or three rounds the leader may 
find his suit established, but his opponents with the 
lead. Hence his methods must be slightly varied 
according to whether or no he has a card of another 
suit wherewith to regain the lead. Such a card is 
known as a card of re-entry, and it is of the highest 
importance to be able to recognize with certainty 
the presence or absence of such a card in the 
leader's hand. An Ace is a practically certain 
card of re-entry, as is a King, Queen suit ; while 
you can regard a suit headed by Queen, Jack, 
Ten as very probable to obtain you the lead in 
the later stages of the hand. A King slightly 
guarded is a probable card of re-entry if held on 
the declarant's left ; but a King must be very 
strongly guarded, if on the declarant's right, to 
have any great chance as a trick-maker. 

Without any such card of re-entry it is a very 
bad policy to lead an Honour originally unless you 
hold at least three of the Bridge Honours in the 
suit, or a suit of altogether exceptional length. 
Holding Ace, King, and five others, or King, 
Queen, and five others, an Honour should be led, 



52 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

but not under other circumstances, if you have 
only two of the Honours and no card of re-entry. 

Hellespont " advises leading the Ace from Ace, 
Queen, and six small ones without a card of re- 
entry, on the chance of catching the King. We 
cannot believe this lead is sound, as the odds are 
greatly in favour of the King being guarded, 
and, in the event of its being guarded in one of 
the adverse hands, it is necessary for your partner 
to hold the remaining three cards if you are to 
make another trick in the suit — a most improbable 
distribution. 

If you have three or more Bridge Honours in a 
suit, it is always right to lead one originally, even 
without a card of re-entry. We now propose to 
indicate the Honour to be led from each possible 
combination of three or more Honours, after which 
we shall tabulate our results, stating the exact 
combinations of cards from which each of the 
Honours is led. 

Our readers will be able to decide for them- 
selves which is the easiest method to employ in 
order to remember the correct leads. 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 



53 



Leads of an Honour from two Honours, with- 
out a card of re-entry — 

Ace, Ktngy and five others. 
King, Queen, and five others. 

Leads of an Honour from three Honours, with- 
out a card of re-entry — 

Ace, King, Queen, 



Ace, Queen, Jack, 
Ace, Queen, Ten, 
Ace, Jack, Ten. 
Kingy Queen, Jack. 
Ktngy Queen, Ten. 
King, Jack, Ten, 
Queen, Jack, Ten. 

Leads of an Honour from four Honours, with- 
out a card of re-entry — 

Ace, King, Queen, Jack. 
Ace, King, Queen, Ten. 



Ace, King, Jack, and 
lessthan four small 

Ace, King, Ten, and 
less than four small 



V 



with seven or more 
in suit lead King 
(being the same 
as Ace, King, and 
five others). 



54 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

Ace, King, Jack, Ten, and three others 
(being the same as Ace, King, and 
five others). 

Ace, King, Jack, Ten, and less than three 
others. 

Ace, Queen, Jack, Ten. 
King, Queen, Jack, Ten. 

Lead of an Honour from five Honours, without 
a card of re-entry — 

Ace, King, Queen, Jack, Ten. 

Holding a card of re-entry, you are able to adopt 
more vigorous and daring tactics. It is not of 
such supreme importance that you should retain 
the lead when your suit has been cleared ; and you 
are justified in trying to clear your suit more 
quickly in the hopes of gaining extra tricks. 

The differences, however, are but slight, and the 
chief point to be noticed is that holding a card 
of re-entry you more frequently lead an Honour 
which is bound to win the first trick. 

Lead from two Honours, when holding a card 
of re-entry — 

Ace, Queen, and five others. 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 55 

Leads from three Honours when holding a card 
of re-entry — 

Ace, Kingy Jack. 
Ace^ Queen, Jack. 
Ace, Queen, Ten. 
Leads from four Honours when holding a card 
of re-entry — 

Ace, Queen, Jack, Ten. 
Ace, King, Jack, Ten. 

Your second lead, should you win the first trick, 
will depend so largely both on the Dummy hand 
and the fall of the cards in the first round, that no 
rules can be laid down. Ingenuity and a small 
amount of experience will be amply sufficient in 
any case that may arise. 

We now propose to tabulate our results, dividing 
them according to the card that is led originally. 

I. Without a card of re-entry — lead 

ACCy 

from No possible combination of cards. 
King, 

from Ace, King, and five others. 

King, Queen, and five others. 
King, Queen, Jack. 
King, Queen, Ten. 



56 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



Queefiy 

from Ace, King, Queen. 
Queen, Jack, Ten. 

Jacky 

from Ace, King, Jack with less than 
seven in suit. 
Ace, Queen, Jack. 
Ace, Jack, Ten. 

Ten, 

from Ace, King, Ten, with less than 
seven in suit. 
Ace, Queen, Ten. 
King, Jack, Ten. 

But 2. With card of re-entry — lead 

from Ace, Queen, and five others. 
Ace, Queen, Jack. 
Ace, Queen, Ten. 

King, 

from Ace, King, Jack. 

Should you hold less than three Honours in the 
suit, or a suit of insufficient length to lead an 
Honour from two, lead your fourth best. 

From the above it will be noticed that you rarely 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 



57 



lead an Honour from only two, but always lead one 
if your long suit is headed by three or more Honours, 
In using the above schemes for leads you should 
notice that as a general rule your lead will be the 
same whether you hold a card of re-entry or not. 
In few exceptional cases, namely those set out 
under heading 2, you adopt a bolder course when 
you hold such a card. Hence, if you have a 
card of re-entry, and you find your suit described 
under heading 2, lead according to it. If it is not 
especially described there, lead in precisely the 
same way as you would if you had no card by 
means of which you could obtain the lead in the 
later stages of the game. 

(B) AGAINST A SUIT DECLARATION 

Here circumstances are entirely changed. The 
trump strength as a rule having been declared 
against you, it is obvious that you have not much 
chance of making tricks with any but high cards ; 
in consequence the lead should be from strength 
rather than length, and tricks should be made as 
speedily as possible. Many a game and many a 
Slam have been saved by the original lead of a 



58 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

winning card, which would otherwise have been 
ruthlessly trumped had the Dealer been let in at 
once. This policy must, however, be employed 
with discretion, as its soundness is based on the 
presumption of an adverse preponderance of 
trumps. Any intimation to the contrary, such as 
the fact of the Dealer having declared Spades, is 
sufficient to restore the validity of the long-suit 
theory. The effect of a double by the leader's 
partner will be dealt with later. 

Holding an Ace, other than the Ace of Trumps, 
it is often advisable to lead it at once, partly as 
mentioned above, to try to make sure of the trick, 
but also (a more important consideration) in order 
that you may retain the lead after seeing the 
exposed hand, the contents of which are often 
a valuable guide to your subsequent proceedings. 
Some authorities advise the invariable adoption 
of this lead when it is possible, but there are 
several considerations which, in our opinion, ren- 
der other tactics preferable. These are : — 

(1) Strength in trumps, especially when their 
quantity is superior to their quality. 

(2) If the suit headed by the Ace is a short 
suit, the chances of the Ace being trumped if not 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 59 

led at once are remote, while the lead might have 
the effect of clearing the suit nicely for the oppo- 
nents. 

(3) Should the Ace be accompanied by the 
Queen, thus forming a valuable winning tenace, 
it will generally be more advisable to wait for 
the suit to be led to you, on the chance of catching 
the King. 

Failing an Ace, or not wishing to lead an 
Ace, the King may be led from a suit headed by 
King, Queen. 

Should neither of these leads be possible, a 
lead of a Queen from Queen, Jack, Ten is often 
cogent. If you are lucky enough to find the King 
in Dummy's hand and the Ace with your partner, 
the position is highly delectable. In any case 
the lead can do no harm. With a hand which 
contains none of these combinations it is often 
puzzling to know what to do. 

A not uncommon practice is to open a short 
suit of one or two cards in the hopes of getting a 
ruff. We class these two leads together, inas- 
much as their ultimate aim is identical, but when 
discussing their merits and demerits we must 
deal with them to a large extent separately. The 



6o WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



practice of leading a two-card suit in the hopes 
of a ruff has, we think, been carried somewhat to 
extremes by some authorities. Such a lead from 
a suit of two small cards on the chance of trump- 
ing the third round is a far more desperate 
measure than can be warranted at such an early 
stage of the game, and the most probable result 
will be to destroy any chance your partner may 
have had of protecting the suit. The argument 
for the lead is that your weakest suit is the most 
likely one for your partner to be strong in, but, in 
default of knowledge, it should always be pre- 
sumed that the cards are equally distributed, and 
it follows that your partner can only be expected 
to hold one high card in three. A more reason- 
able modification of this coup is the lead of a 
strengthening card from a suit of two ; but, on the 
question of what is and what is not a strengthen- 
ing card, far too liberal views have been advanced, 
and the lead of a Queen, Knave, or Ten with one 
other card advocated. As regards the Queen, the 
lead seems reasonable. It does not compel your 
partner to sacrifice an Honour to a presumed lead 
from strength, and, being unguarded, it cannot 
well make if kept in. Accordingly, and especially 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 



6i 



if your hand is such that it is improbable that 
you will get the lead again before trumps are 
cleared, the Queen may reasonably be led from 
a suit of two. It is only necessary for your 
partner to hold either Ace or King to enable him 
on getting in to carry the suit to the third round, 
when the desired ruff may be obtained. 

With regard, however, to the Knave and Ten 
the case is different. They are not strong enough 
in themselves to prevent your partner sacrificing 
his Honours, and for that reason alone we cannot 
but condemn the lead, especially that of the Ten. 

It should be understood that our objections 
to the two-suit coup only apply to the original 
lead. Once the exposed hand is on the table, 
rules are at a discount, but, for the first leap 
in the dark, risks should as far as possible be 
avoided. Afterwards, as leads through strength 
or up to weakness, they are often most valuable, 
and your partner, seeing the motive, will not be 
misled into crediting you with any strength in the 
suit. 

The original lead of a singleton is open to the 
same objections as the two-suit lead with regard 
to cutting up your partner's hand, but has this 



62 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



advantage, that, should he hold a winning card 
or get the lead again before trumps are cleared, 
you are at once able to ruff. But, and it is a big 
but, he may not choose to return your lead. As 
we shall show later, against a trump declaration 
there is no compulsion to do so, and it is often 
apparently more advisable to lead up the weakness 
in the exposed hand, or to open a strong suit 
of his own, and this risk should always be taken 
into consideration. 

We have been at some pains to set out the 
darker side of the short-suit system, because, as 
mentioned above, it has been prosecuted in some 
circles to an extent far beyond its merits. Its 
proper scope is as a last resource, when length 
and strength are lacking ; but to raise it to the 
dignity of a lead by choice is a reductio ad 
absurdum which we cannot view with any degree 
of equanimity, and in the hands of the inex- 
perienced it is a weapon far more dangerous to the 
assailant than to the assailed. 

Should the leader be still unable to find a card 
to lead, let him lead the lowest card from a suit 
of four to a King or Queen, or the highest of 
three or more headed by two Honours. 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 63 

If he cannot do even this, he may lead whatever 
he likes except a trump. 

Original leads in plain suits when there are 
trumps — 

(1) Ace (subject to the above-mentioned con- 

siderations). 

(2) King, from King, Queen. 

(3) Queen, from Queen, Jack, Ten. 

(4) Singleton or Queen, from Queen and one 

other. 

(5) Highest of three suit headed by two Honours. 

(6) Lowest of four suit to a King or Queen. 

(7) Anything except a trump. 

The above leads are in descending order of 
merit. 

Holding a plain suit headed by Ace, King, 
against a trump declaration, lead the King before 
the Ace if the suit consists of three or more 
cards. To lead Ace, followed by King, informs 
your partner that you hold no more of the suit, 
and he will, on getting the lead, give you another 
round of the suit for you to ruff. 



64 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



(C) WHEN THE DECLARATION HAS BEEN 
DOUBLED 

Clearly when the original leader has himself 
doubled he will require but little advice on the 
play of his hand. There is, however, one point 
upon which players sometimes make a mistake, 
namely, in the rare cases when the leader doubles 
a suit declaration on great all-round strength but 
with only a short trump suit. In such cases, if the 
double is sound, he must do his best to clear 
trumps. He is, perhaps, justified in leading an 
Ace in order to look at Dummy's hand, but even 
then his second lead should be trumps. If his 
overwhelmingly strong plain suits are to be em- 
ployed to their best advantage, he must extract 
from his opponents as many of their trumps as he 
can. Should they outnumber him in trumps, he 
will then be able to obtain the lead in any suit and 
proceed to force out the remaining trumps with 
some of his high cards in plain suits. If, on the 
other hand, he neglects to clear trumps, he may 
find that one of the hands which is opposed to 
him is very short in one of his strong suits, and 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 



65 



thus give it the opportunity of making small 
trumps. 

When, however, the leader's partner has doubled, 
it is the leader's bounden duty absolutely to sacri- 
fice his hand to that of his partner. 

If the double is in a trump suit, he must lead his 
trumps^ beginning with the highest and continuing 
with the next best as long as he retains the lead. 
The importance of this cannot be overestimated. 
By leading his trumps in this way he not only 
strengthens his partner's hand, but also enables 
him to locate the trumps, usually with considerable 
accuracy, often with absolute certainty. 

Many players do not consider themselves under 
an obligation to lead trumps when Spades have 
been doubled by their partner, on the ground that 
Spades are at times doubled from considerable 
all-round strength, but with comparatively weak 
trumps. As we have pointed out above, to take 
full advantage of all-round strength, every effort 
must be made to clear trumps, and we see no 
reason why an exception should be permitted in 
the case of Spades. 

Do not be afraid of leading trumps through 
your partner up to the declarant. If he has 

F 



66 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

doubled with the declarant on his left, by so doing 
he has intimated that he holds very great strength, 
and wishes for the trump lead. Not to lead trumps 
when your partner has doubled is tantamount to 
telling him that you have Chicane, and your partner 
will play on this assumption. 

When the leader's partner has doubled a No 
Trump declaration, there are, as we have already 
pointed out under the heading of Doubling, two 
rival conventions. If your partner is a disciple 
of the Heart Convention, you will lead him your 
best Heart without any fear. Should he be a 
follower of the Short Suit Convention, you will 
lead him the best card of your shortest suit, pro- 
vided such suit does not contain an Ace, King, 
or Queen. In cases of equal brevity, lead the 
weakest suit. When confronted with two equally 
weak suits, lead the one which is the more valu- 
able as a suit declaration. And in all cases you 
will live in fear and trembling until you see the 
card your partner plays. 

Before, however, you lead a suit for the benefit 
of your partner who has doubled, you should 
always play any certain winning cards you may 
hold in your hand. This is especially important 



THE ORIGINAL LEAD 



67 



when your partner wishes you to lead your shortest 
suit, as by first playing out your winning cards, 
you are enabled to see Dummy's hand, and this 
may show plainly that your partner's suit is not 
the one you would otherwise have led. 



68 



THE PLAY OF THE SECOND 
HAND 

The play of the second hand is a subject of the 
greatest complexity. We do not, therefore, pro- 
pose to enter into all its multifarious details, but 
rather to indicate the general lines upon which 
you should base your play, and to give examples of 
a few of the more common awkward positions in 
which the second player may find himself. 

Ordinarily the second hand will play his lowest, 
but exceptions may arise to this general rule from 
one of two causes: either from the fact that the 
leader has led an Honour in a suit in which the 
second player holds a higher Honour, or else that 
the leader has led a card of a suit in which the 
second player holds an Honour but slightly 
guarded. 

In No Trumps, holding an Honour singly 
guarded other than the Ace, play it whenever 



THE PLAY OF THE SECOND HAND 69 



it is higher than the card led. To this there is 
one exception. Do not cover an original No 
Trump lead of a Queen with a King from the 
Dummy hand, even if it is only singly guarded, 
unless you as Dealer hold the Ace. A moment's 
consideration will show the reason for this excep- 
tion. A Queen is only led originally from either 
Ace, King, Queen, or from Queen, Jack, Ten. 
If you hold the King in Dummy, the lead must 
be from the latter combination, and unless you 
hold the Ace, your solitary chance of stopping the 
suit is to compel the third player to hold it up 
until he .blocks the leader's suit with it. 

In No Trumps, holding an Honour twice 
guarded, as a rule you will play a small one. An 
exception to this must be made in cases of a card 
led for clearing purposes, when the leader's 
partner will obviously finesse against you. If 
there is any hope of your partner having a lower 
card guarded which your sacrifice may make good, 
play your Honour and hope for the best. For 
instance, the Dealer leads a Jack through your 
King up to Ace, Queen in Dummy's hand. If 
you play your King on the Jack, there is just a 
chance that by doing so you may make good the 



70 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

Ten twice guarded in your partner's hand. If, 
however, you see the Ten with Dummy in addi- 
tion to the Ace, Queen, you can do no good by 
covering with your King the Jack led ; the only 
chance rests in its being the Dealer's solitary card 
of the suit. Of course, even when you see the 
Ace, Queen, Ten in Dummy, you would play 
your King, if it were only singly guarded, on to 
the Jack led. For in these circumstances your 
only chance is that your partner holds the Nine 
and three small cards. 

If you hold as many as three guards to your 
Honour, do not play it second in hand in No 
Trumps unless it is certain to win the trick, and 
you will lose tricks by any delay. This case prac- 
tically only arises when such an Honour is held by 
the Dealer or Dummy, and the combined hands 
are exceptionally powerful. 

Holding a fourchette^ i.e. the cards next above 
and below the one led, always cover, even in the 
case of very small cards. 

In No Trumps you will often, indeed usually, 
find it advantageous to hold up a winning card in 
your opponents' suit until the opponent who does 
not hold the long cards of that suit is void. 



THE PLAY OF THE SECOND HAND 71 

Obviously there is no object to be attained by 
holding up such a card beyond this point. 

When a suit declaration has been made, all the 
above principles apply except that of holding up 
a winning card of your opponents' suit. In plain 
suits do not hold up a winning card for more than 
one round. Indeed, it is often good policy to 
play it first round, if it is at the head of a very 
long suit which you think may be trumped later. 
Holding the two top cards in a suit, play one of 
them in the first round. If you have any card, 
other than the Ace, that you see is certain to win 
the trick, play it first round. Should you hold 
Honours in sequence higher than the card led, the 
lowest should be played second hand in a plain 
suit. 

Above all. Do Not Hesitate. To fail to play 
with your customary speed is usually just as good 
as putting the doubtful card down on the table 
and letting your adversaries finesse to their hearts* 
content. 

In the later rounds of a plain suit the second 
player is often in doubt as to whether he should 
trump and which card he should employ for the 
purpose. If you are uncertain whether your part- 



72 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

ner or opponents hold the winning card in the 
suit, you should trump, unless you yourself hold 
considerable strength in trumps. Even if your 
strength in trumps consists in their numbers 
rather than in their quality, you will do well to 
trump when playing against an attacking declara- 
tion. 

If the leader is leading out winning cards of a 
suit in which both the second and third hands are 
void, the second hand must trump. The fact that 
you are certain to be overtrumped does not re- 
move the obligation. By passing such cards 
you enable the third hand to discard from his 
weak suits, thereby, perhaps, depriving you of 
otherwise certain tricks later in the game. Always 
in such cases play a high trump if it is at all likely 
either to win the trick outright or to assist your 
partner by forcing a higher trump from the third 
hand. 

If, under similar circumstances, the leader plays 
a losing card for his partner to ruff, your play 
must depend on whether the third player is the 
strong or the weak trump hand. Obviously to 
play a small trump second hand is useless. If 
the strong trump hand follows, generally let the 



THE PLAY OF THE SECOND HAND 73 



trick go, unless you hold a single or unguarded 
Honour other than the Ace. Such a card should 
be played for the object noted above — namely, on 
the chance of strengthening your partner in the 
trump suit. If the third hand is weak in trumps, 
play any card likely to win the trick, as it is most 
undesirable that the weak hand should make his 
small trumps. 



74 



THE PLAY OF THE THIRD HAND 

Ordinarily the third player will play his highest, 
provided such card is higher than the two already 
played to the trick. If his top cards are in 
sequence, he will play the lowest of that sequence. 

Exceptions are, however, introduced when the 
original lead is an Honour and the declaration is 
one of No Trumps. Here a thorough knowledge 
of the Honour leads in No Trumps is requisite. 
The dual object at which the third player aims is 
to avoid blocking his partner's suit, and yet to 
avoid so reckless a clashing of his Honours with 
those of the leader, that a card lightly guarded in 
an adverse hand is enabled to make. 

If your partner makes an original lead of an 
Honour against a No Trump call, you should 
always retain the lowest card of your suit, in order 
to ensure being able to put him in again. This 
simple device, assisted by the sight of Dummy's 
hand and an intimate knowledge of the correct 



THE PLAY OF THE THIRD HAND 75 



Honour leads, should enable the third player to 
get out of his partner's way at the psychological 
moment. 

If your partner leads originally a small card 
against a No Trump call, you must play your 
highest (subject, of course, to the second player 
not having already won the trick), unless the 
exposed hand renders a finesse either certain or 
compulsory. To decide if a finesse is certain, the 

Eleven Rule" (see p. 94) is invaluable. A 
finesse (but only against one card whose position 
you do not know) is compulsory, when you see 
that Dummy is certain to block the suit if you do 
not finesse. For example, Dummy holds King and 
one small, or Queen and two small ; you hold 
Ace, Jack, and small. To play the Ace under 
these circumstances would ensure the King or 
Queen blocking the suit in the second or third 
rounds respectively. Your only chance is to 
credit your partner with the Queen in the first, or 
the King in the second instance, play the Jack, 
and trust to clearing the suit in this way. 

When there are trumps, only the certain finesse 
is justifiable. Unless you see in Dummy's hand 
the card, or cards, intermediate between your 



76 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

best and second best in the suit, you must play 
your highest. Never fall into the common error 
of playing Queen from Ace, Queen unless the 
King is exposed on your right. 



77 



THE PLAY OF THE FOURTH HAND 

The fourth hand will, as a rule, win a trick which 
is against him whenever he can. 

There are, however, occasions when he may- 
refuse to win a trick in the hope of securing a 
greater profit. 

The first is when he holds the top card of a 
suit the bulk of which lies with the opponents. 
In such cases he will often do well to hold it up 
as long as he can, with the object of exhausting 
the weaker of his opponents' hands in the suit. 
This device is of the utmost importance when 
No Trumps are declared, and should almost 
always be resorted to. When there are trumps, 
the danger of such a card being ruffed makes it 
necessary to play it sooner. 

If the fourth hand holds, say, Ace, Jack, and 
others of a suit of which the leader has led the 
King, it may prove profitable to refrain from win- 
ning the trick. The leader, supposing the Ace 



78 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

to be with his partner, will be almost certain to 
continue the suit, thus ensuring a trick for both 
Ace and Jack. Had the fourth player won the 
first trick with the Ace, his Jack would have 
remained guarded, but, being on the leader's 
right, it would very likely have been finessed 
against and failed to make. 

When the third hand holds a strong tenace, 
e.g. Ace, Queen, Jack of a suit, he will usually 
play the Jack in the hope that the King is with 
the second player. Should the fourth hand, under 
the circumstances, hold the King, he may encour- 
age the delusion by not playing it. The third hand 
will then have to put the leader in again in another 
suit, and in order to attain this object and so 
repeat the finesse, a valuable stopping card may 
have to be sacrificed. Like the above, this coup 
is mainly applicable to No Trumps. 



79 



PLAYING DUMMY 

(A) WITHOUT TRUMPS 

This is the most beatific position in which the 
Bridge enthusiast can find himself, and is cer- 
tainly the greatest test of skill that the game 
affords. The three chief guiding rules to be 
observed are : (i) Get out your long suits ; (2) 
Hold up your weak suits ; (3) Make the game. 

(i) Too much importance cannot be attached 
to the necessity of playing out your long suits 
as soon as possible. By long we mean any suit 
in which there is a reasonable probability of ex- 
tracting all your opponents' cards in that suit with 
a bit to spare. These suits should be led directly 
you get in. It gives you a comfortable lead, is 
apt to demoralize your opponents, and by making 
them discard both saps their strength and often 
affords useful information as to the disposition 
of important cards in other suits. If your long 



8o WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

suit is not of this calibre and one or more tricks 
must necessarily be lost in it, go for it all the 
same, and establish it as quickly as possible. 
Always before leading your long suit count the 
number of cards you hold between you, and, in 
corollary, the probable distribution of the re- 
mainder. Do not attach a superstitious value to 
Aces and Kings, but consider, primarily, length. 
Remember, if you hold seven between you, you 
have the odd card, while eight or nine is a great 
preponderance. Until the contrary is indicated, 
you should assume that the remaining cards of the 
suit lie evenly between your opponents, and play 
accordingly. 

Do not finick about with aimless finesses in 
suits in which you hold no particular strength. 
It is the surest way to lose tricks, as you are play- 
ing your opponents' game. 

Always be on your guard against blocking a 
long suit by unnecessarily retaining high cards 
in the weaker hand. Unless there is any very valid 
reason to the contrary, it is a sound rule that high 
cards in a long suit should always be led or played 
first from the weak hand, or, to put it in another 
way, the shorter hand in a suit should fiever be left 



PLAYING DUMMY 



8i 



With the highest card or cards of that suit and no 
little card wherewith to return the lead. This 
apparently obvious precaution is so constantly 
and outrageously neglected by indifferent players 
that we feel bound to emphasize the point. It is 
no excuse that the long hand has a card of re-entry 
in another suit, as the unnecessary use of such a 
card will often seriously weaken your subsequent 
operations. 

Another case which sometimes arises is this. 
The declarant's partner holds no card of any value 
whatsoever in three suits, but in the fourth 
holds, say. Ace, King, and four small cards. The 
declarant himself has only two small cards in 
suit. Obviously, either the Queen, Knave, or 
Ten must be guarded in one of the opposing 
hands. If the Ace and King are led out, the suit 
will probably be cleared on the third round, but, 
as the declarant will then be exhausted in the suit 
and there is no possibility of re-entry, the remain- 
ing cards will fail to make. The correct play is 
for the declarant to lead one of his two small 
cards in the suit to which he should also play a 
small card from the long hand. On getting in 
again he can then give the lead with his remain- 

G 



82 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



ing card to the Ace, King, and all should go 
well. 

(2) When, as often happens, the suit first led by 
your opponent is one in which you can only hope 
to make one trick, do not (unless your other suits 
are so strong that delay may entail loss) be in any 
hurry to play your winning card. For example, 
holding Ace and two small cards of a suit and 
(say) two small ones in the exposed hand, hold up 
the Ace until the third round. By this time, 
supposing the original leader to have led from 
five, his partner will be exhausted in the suit and 
you will be able to risk his getting the lead with 
impunity. 

Of course, should the leader's partner prove 
void in the suit on the first or second round, the 
winning card should be played at once. The only 
object in holding it up is to exhaust the weak 
hand. 

On the same principle never play out the win- 
ning cards of your opponents' suits unnecessarily. 
So long as you retain them you can go on estab- 
lishing your long suits and attempt finesses 
without fear. There is little risk of such cards 
not making, as your opponents on getting in will 



PLAYING DUMMY 



83 



generally be bound to lead to them. By playing 
them out you are not only establishing their suits, 
but are also depriving yourself of the most valuable 
cards of re-entry. 

Do not be carried away by the possession of 
even the Ace, King, and Queen of a suit, unless 
the two hands contain at least seven cards of that 
suit between them. Nothing is more fettering to 
the best play of the two hands than the knowledge 
that your opponents hold established cards. So 
long as you are in a sound position all rounds 
try not for the certain tricks^ hut for the doubtful 
ones, 

(3) Never endanger the game for the chance of 
making an extra trick or so. When you see the 
necessary number of tricks in your hands, make 
them at once, however dull it may seem, if there 
is the least risk to be run by your opponents 
getting the lead : for example, if they have 
established a suit against you. You may find all 
the remaining cards of that suit in one hand and 
be forced to throw away winning cards on them. 
It needs a very forgiving partner to condone an 
error of this description. To risk the odd trick in 
the same way is equally bad play. On the other 



84 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



hand, when the only chance of making Game is to 
hazard something, any course of play which does 
not endanger the odd trick is justifiable. 



(B) WHEN THERE ARE TRUMPS 

Get them out. Given a sound attacking de- 
claration, and reasonable support in the other 
hand, the best chance your opponents have of 
getting on terms with you is to cut up your hands 
by ruffing before you can draw their trumps. 
Therefore, take the lead as soon as possible. Be 
careful how you finesse in the suit originally led, 
as it may be from a singleton. Holding a 
winning card, you may do well to put it on at 
once, while of two winning cards you should 
always play one in the first round. Having got 
in, your bounden duty is to lead trumps, and 
go on leading them. Do not be carried away 
by the chance of making a small trump in the 
weak hand. Only a certainty or a very difficult 
hand will justify such a proceeding, while to mess 
about in plain suits is little short of lunacy. 
Above all, do not be guilty of the crowning 



PLAYING DUMMY 85 

idiocy of leading losing cards for the strong 
trump hand to ruff. To waste trumps in this way 
before leading them is little more reasonable than, 
in a covert shoot, expending half your cartridges 
on blackbirds before the rise begins. Do not 
consider it a terrible thing to draw two trumps 
from your and Dumm.y's hands for one from 
your opponents. So long as there are losing 
trumps against you they must be extracted. It 
is only when the outstanding trumps are winners 
and all in one hand that you should stop leading, 
and try instead to force them out with your plain 
suits. 

Having exhausted the opposing trumps, be 
niggardly of such as remain to you. Their 
function is now to apply the closure to your 
opponents' long suit while your own is being 
established, and, as they are bound to make sooner 
or later, there is absolutely no object in using 
them unless compelled to. You are, in fact, 
playing a No Trump hand with your long 
trumps supernumerary Aces, and all the princi- 
ples described above for No Trump play should 
be followed. 

Supposing, however, that a defensive declara- 



86 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



tion has been necessary, or that you have declared 
on minimum strength and find yourself poorly 
supported, the conditions are completely altered. 
Act on the defensive in Trumps, do all you can to 
get a ruff from the weak hand, and make at once 
any tricks which may be at all endangered by 
delay. If it is feasible to establish a cross-ruff, 
do so, and keep it up as long as possible, regard- 
less of the quantity or quality of the trumps 
expended. 

In all cases when playing the two hands, play 
false cards whenever you can. You have no 
partner to deceive and two opponents : e.g. 
when called upon to win a trick with Ace or 
King, win it with the Ace. Each of your op- 
ponents may then imagine the other to hold the 
King, to their subsequent discomfiture. On the 
same principle avoid winning tricks from your 
own hand which can with equal convenience be 
won by Dummy. Try to remember from which 
hand you have to lead. Nothing is more irritat- 
ing than a player who after long consideration 
leads from the wrong side, and has to commence 
the process all over again. Make a point of 



PLAYING DUMMY 



87 



thinking out some definite plan of campaign at 
the beginning of the hand, and do not leave the 
consideration of the possibilities of each suit 
until it is led. Make up your mind what suit 
or suits you intend to rely on, and, subject to 
the fall of the cards, adhere to your original 
project. 



88 



PLAYING AGAINST DUMMY 

The one and only way to succeed is to play in 
closest combination with your partner. The ad- 
vantage possessed by the Dealer in seeing all the 
cards at his disposal is so great that the most per- 
fect co-ordination is often powerless against it. 
How much more so when each of his opponents 
is intent only on his own hand ! In every hand 
and every suit one player will usually have to 
sacrifice himself to his partner. Never, therefore, 
refuse to adopt any course of play for which your 
partner is obviously asking (e.g. to win a trick or 
to trump), unless you are certain that you are in 
the best position to judge. Loss of confidence 
is far more injurious than the loss of a trick. 

A question which often arises is the advisability 
or otherwise of returning your partner's lead. In 
such cases the best criterion is the declaration 
made. Against No Trumps nothing but great 
strength in another suit, or disadvantage made 



PLAYING AGAINST DUMMY 89 

obvious by the exposed hand, will justify the 
adoption of any other tactics. By disadvantage 
we do not mean merely that the highest card or 
cards of the suit are against you. When the 
exposed hand holds a strong tenace over your 
partner, or has such strength as to preclude the 
possibility of establishing the suit, then, and then 
only, should it be abandoned. An attempt to 
establish two suits will result in failure in both, 
and is about as sensible as trying to get pace out 
of a boat by rowing alternate strokes. The only 
universal exception to the rule is when your partner 
has led from a strong suit which has obviously 
been cleared by the opening round or rounds. 
In such cases, having the lead, you should first 
lead any certain winning cards you may hold in 
other suits before returning it. 

When trumps are declared there is no such 
obligation, as your partner may be leading from 
almost anything. All that can be done is to try 
to diagnose the combination from which the lead 
was made, and, if you see no particular advantage 
to be gained by continuing, it is perfectly justifi- 
able to try any other opening that may suggest 
itself. 



go WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

In the absence of any other obvious considera- 
tion for a lead, your play must be regulated by the 
position of the exposed hand. If it is on your 
right, you should lead up to any weak suit it may 
contain, always, if possible, opening with a card 
higher than any held by the exposed hand. Unless 
the Dealer holds considerable strength in the suit, 
such a lead will probably seriously embarrass him. 
If the exposed hand is on your left, lead through 
its strength. Prefer for such a lead a suit in which 
the exposed hand holds high cards, but no particu- 
lar length, especially when such cards form a 
tenace and you do not hold the intervening card. 
The lead of a strengthening card, such as Jack or 
Ten, is as valuable in this case as in the lead up 
to weakness. In both cases the lead is soundest 
from a suit in which you yourself hold no strength 
to speak of. 

Another important point to decide is, whether 
to make your certain tricks at once, or wait. 
Against a No Trump declaration the latter course 
is generally the most advantageous, as, if the 
cards are fairly equally divided, each suit will 
probably be fought out before the end. If, how- 
ever, you hold enough winning cards to make the 



PLAYING AGAINST DUMMY 91 



odd trick or save the game, utilize them at once, 
if there is any risk of their failing to make on the 
Dealer getting in. 

Against an attacking suit declaration, however, 
in nine cases out of ten it is best to make all the 
tricks you can at once, if there is the least risk of 
their being trumped later. 

Do not, however, be afraid of being trumped. 
To force the declarant's trump suit is often the 
best game you can play, and is almost invariably 
safe. Avoid, however, giving the weak hand a 
ruff. When there is one small trump in the weak 
hand which may make in this way, or which is 
preventing you from making tricks in a plain suit 
in which it is void, it is a good plan to lead a trump 
through the strong hand to get rid of it. 

Never under any circumstances lead a suit which 
both of your opponents can trump, as the Dealer 
will, in such cases, trump from the weak hand 
and throw away a losing card from the other ; the 
most advantageous state of affairs he could possibly 
wish for. 

Trump all you know, even if by doing so you 
are unguarding an Honour. Trump and trump 
high if your partner leads a suit in which he must 



92 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

be aware that both you and the fourth hand are 
void. His motive for such a lead will be the hope 
either (i) that you will hold a trump higher than 
any in the fourth hand, or (2) that you will hold 
a trump high enough to force out some big card 
and thereby enable him to make a trick later. 

The doctrine of ^ ^assumption" is very important 
when playing against the declarants. It often 
becomes obvious towards the middle or end of 
a hand that, unless your partner holds certain 
cards, you are doomed to defeat. In such cases 
assume that your partner does hold such cards, 
and play accordingly. For example, three rounds 
of a hand remain to be played. Dummy has the 
lead and holds the King and two small Hearts. 
You on his left hold Ace and another Heart and 
an established card in another suit. All three 
tricks are necessary to save the game. To this 
end obviously the Queen of Hearts must be with 
your partner. Assume this to be the case, and on 
a small Heart being led, pass it. If you are right, 
all should go well. If not, you may lose another 
trick ; but the game being already won, this is of 
no great importance. 

Assumption must of course be coupled with 



PLAYING AGAINST DUMMY 93 



observation, and the exposed hand and the Dealer's 
discards carefully watched. If, for instance, the 
exposed hand holds good cards in a suit in which 
you are weak, and the Dealer appears to avoid 
opening it, the deduction is that your partner is 
also strong in the suit, and you are accordingly 
entitled to lead it. If, too, on a suit declaration, 
the Dealer seems shy of leading trumps, the same 
principle applies, and, if on the right side, you 
may take the opportunity of leading a trump 
through the declarant's hand. 

Trumps should often be led against a defensive 
declaration. In such cases you are generally 
entitled to assume that the bulk of the making 
cards are distributed between yourself and your 
partner. Consequently the best thing to do is to 
clear trumps. 

Avoid playing false cards. You may deceive 
the Dealer, but you are certain to deceive your 
partner. If he subsequently gets the lead, he will 
probably play the very game you are trying to 
choke off. 



94 



THE ELEVEN RULE 

This is a simple but extremely useful device 
employed when you are third player and your 
partner has made an original lead of the fourth 
best card of a suit. By it you are enabled to 
calculate instantly the number of cards jointly 
held by your adversaries that are higher than the 
one led by your partner. 

Subtract from eleven the pips of the card led 
by your partner and you obtain the number of 
cards that you and your two adversaries together 
hold in the suit that are higher than the one led. 
From this, seeing your own and Dummy's hands, 
you can easily determine whether such a card, 
provided it is not covered from Dummy, is good 
against the Dealer. For example, your partner 
in his first lead against a No Trump declaration 
plays a Seven of Hearts ; Dummy holds Queen, 
Eight and Five ; you hold King, Ten and Three. 
Subtract seven, the pips of your partner's lead. 



THE ELEVEN RULE 



95 



from eleven, and you obtain a remainder of four, 
showing that there are only four higher cards 
than the Seven outside your partner's hand. 
These four cards you see in your own and 
Dummy's hands, and hence unless the Dealer 
covers from Dummy you can safely play the 
Three, knowing that the Seven led is good 
against the Dealer. 

This rule is also important to the Dealer in his 
play of the combined hands. Should he have no 
card in his hand higher than the one led by the 
opponent on his left, he should remember the 
third pla3^er can detect the fact, and should play 
accordingly ; in many cases he will find it wise to 
cover from Dummy, and so prevent a second lead 
from the first player up to his obvious weakness. 

It should be noted that the Eleven Rule only 
applies to leads of a fourth best card. 



96 



CALLING AND DISCARDING 

These two points, though hardly identical, are 
yet so closely connected in actual play that they 
are most conveniently treated under a single 
heading. 

Unfortunately the all-important subject of dis- 
carding is still in the melting-pot. At least three 
well-known systems are in vogue, and, as our aim 
is to avoid being arbitrary on any unsettled point 
of the game, we propose to set out all three, 
giving the pros and cons of each for individual 
consideration. 

It is always advisable to find out from your 
partner before starting a game which system he 
proposes to follow, and also to inform him which 
you yourself favour. 

The importance of discarding correctly, and 
according to some system which is understood 
by your partner, is threefold. In the first place 
you naturally wish to weaken your hand as little 



CALLING AND DISCARDING 97 



as possible. Thus small cards, in themselves 
worthless, may well be valuable as guards to high 
cards in the suit. Secondly, your system of dis- 
cards must be intelligible to your partner in order 
that, when he wishes to lead a card for your 
benefit, he may select one from the right suit. 
And thirdly, that by correctly reading your dis- 
cards he may be able to discard himself with far 
greater confidence than would be possible had he 
no idea in which suits lay your strength or your 
weakness. 

(l) THE INVARIABLE DISCARD FROM WEAKNESS 

This system is easily described. The first 
discard is from your weakest suit. Should you 
discard from two suits, the remaining suit is the 
one you wish led. And, if compelled to discard 
from three suits, the one from which you discard 
last is your strongest. 

The great advantage of this system is that it is 
very simple, and as it accords with one's natural 
inclinations, is not likely to be forgotten. It is, 
perhaps, the best to begin on, but, in view of the 
greater benefits obtainable under the other sys- 

H 



98 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

terns, we cannot recommend it to the more aspir- 
ing, although it is now undoubtedly the most 
generally adopted. 

(2) THE INVARIABLE DISCARD FROM STRENGTH 

The converse of No. i. Your first discard is 
from your strongest suit. Second and subsequent 
discards are viewed as forced, and do not signify 
either strength or weakness. 

This system is as simple as the last, and has, 
moreover, the further advantage of indicating to 
your partner speedily and exactly the suit in 
which your strength lies. As soon as you have 
discarded, he knows not only what suit to lead to 
you, but also that he can trust to you for its pro- 
tection, and so discard from it himself without 
fear. Moreover, while it is usually but little 
assistance to the Dealer for him to know which of 
his opponents is strong in his weak suits, it is 
often of the greatest use to him to be able to 
guess on which side a card in his strong suits is 
guarded, and the discard from strength is less 
likely to give this information. The great disad- 
vantage is that, when the cards are evenly distri- 



CALLING AND DISCARDING 99 

buted, you are at times faced with the dilemma 
that you must either mislead your partner by dis- 
carding from weakness, or seriously impair the 
strength of your best suit by reducing its numbers 
from four to three. This may, however, some- 
times be obviated by employing the double dis- 
card from weakness described later. 

(3) THE MIXED DISCARD, OR HELLESPONT'S " 
SYSTEM 

In medieval times, when Whist was in favour, 
the convention was adopted by many of the best 
players of departing from the general rule of dis- 
carding from weakness when once the trump 
strength had been declared against them, and a 
directory discard from strength was permitted. 

Hellespont" saw the possibilities of this method, 
and adapted it to suit the requirements of Bridge. 
His theory is that when in an attacking position, 
as when your partner is leading winning cards, 
you will naturally elect to discard the least valu- 
able cards in your hand, namely, small cards from 
your weakest suits. When, however, your adver- 
saries are in, and defensive measures must be 



lOo WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

adopted, these small cards may be indispensable 
as guards to any Honours you may hold in the 
suit. Accordingly the procedure is to discard 
from well-protected suits which can spare a card 
or so. 

As there is a slight difference in the working 
of the system according as the declaration is No 
Trumps or a suit, we have thought it best to give 
the two separately. 

(i) No Trumps 

In No Trumps, when your Adversaries are lead- 
ing", your First Discard is from the Suit you wish 
to be led. Your partner will (subject to the excep- 
tions mentioned later in the case of double dis- 
cards) draw his inferences solely from your first 
discard, all subsequent discards being viewed as 
forced. 

In No Trumps, when your Partner is leading, 
your First Discard is from your Weakest Suit. 

Should you discard twice from different suits, 
your partner will infer that the suit from which 
you have not discarded is the one you wish him 
to lead. 



CALLING AND DISCARDING loi 



(2) When there are Trumps 

In this case the discard depends, not upon the 
position of the lead, but whether you are playing 
an attacking or defensive game. If the declara- 
tion has been made from weakness or has been 
doubled, you will discard from your weakest suit, 
as when attacking in No Trumps. Otherwise 
discard from the suit you wish to be led, as you 
would in No Trump hand when your opponents 
are leading and making tricks. 

We venture to think that this system unites the 
advantages of both the others. When used in 
conjunction with the general conventions next 
described, the result is wonderfully complete 
and harmonious. The only objection that can 
seriously be urged against it is that it is some- 
what complicated, and therefore dangerous in the 
hands of beginners, but by good players this can 
hardly be weighed against its extreme utility. 



I02 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



GENERAL CONVENTIONS 

There are a number of conventional discards 
and calls which do not form an integral part 
of any of the above systems, but can be used 
in conjunction with all, and will often prove 
most valuable as variations when it is desirable 
to depart from the principles upon which your 
partner expects you to discard. 

(l) THE DOUBLE DISCARD 

It often happens, especially in No Trumps, that 
a long suit is being led in which it is obvious 
that you will have to discard more than once. 
In such cases, if you are particularly anxious 
to show strength or weakness in a certain suit, the 
following methods may be adopted. 

(a) To show strength, — For this purpose discard 
from your strong suit an unnecessarily high card, 
discarding next a lower card from the same suit. 
For instance, should you discard the Six of 
Diamonds and afterwards discard (or sometimes 
play) the Three of Diamonds, you have shown 
strength in Diamonds. The occasion for this 



CALLING AND DISCARDING 103 



device will generally arise: (i) under the weak- 
ness" system when your opponents are leading 
their long cards, (2) under Hellespont's" system 
when your partner is leading and making tricks. 
In both cases your arrangement with your partner 
is to discard from weakness, but by calling in the 
manner indicated the danger of misleading him is 
obviated. 

{b) To show weakness, — This convention is 
the converse of the last, and is of far greater 
practical utility, namely, the To discard twice 
successively from a suit without calling shows 
absolute weakness therein. As a variation from 
the discard from strength or from the discards 
under Hellespont's " system, it is most valu- 
able when your opponents are leading in a 
No Trump hand. Although under such circum- 
stances you have covenanted to discard from 
strength, it may be that by so doing your only 
respectable suit would be seriously weakened, 
while many of your other cards are only fit to be 
thrown away. By these means the strong suit 
can be retained in its entirety. Thus if your 
partner sees your original discard to be the Two of 
Hearts, he will rightly deduce that your strength 



I04 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

lies in Hearts. When, however, he sees that your 
next discard is the Five of Hearts, he will argue, 
**My partner has discarded twice successively in 
Hearts without calling ; he is therefore absolutely 
weak in the suit, and cannot afford to discard 
from his strong suit without unduly weakening it." 
He will therefore keep his own Hearts guarded as 
fully as possible, and, when he gets the lead, will 
choose some other suit to give you. Note care- 
fully that under this convention your discards 
must be made successively. 

(2) THE CALL BY A SINGLE DISCARD 

This call is often useful to show strength when 
other methods are impracticable or undesirable. 
Holding a very strong suit, say five or six headed 
by a Quart Major, discard the Ace. Your partner 
will naturally infer your great strength from the 
fact that you are able lightly to cast away a card 
of such calibre. Likewise, a discard of the King 
from a suit headed by a Quart to the King will 
serve the same end. 



CALLING AND DISCARDING 105 



(3) THE CALL FOR A RUFF 

This call, of course, will only apply when 
trumps are declared, and should only be used 
when your partner is leading. Under these cir- 
cumstances, holding only two cards of the suit led, 
you may indicate the fact by playing the higher 
of the two before the lower. For example, your 
partner leads King, Ace from a suit of five. On 
them you play the Seven, followed by the Three. 
Your partner can then lead a third round, confident 
that you and not the Dealer will ruff. On the 
other hand, not to play in this manner is tanta- 
mount to telling your partner that you have at 
least one card of the suit left after the second 
round. 

For example, your partner leads King, Queen 
from a suit of five, headed by a Tierce Major. If 
there are three of the suit in Dummy's hand, and 
you do not call in the first two rounds, your partner 
will know that the Dealer is void, and will not lead 
a third round of the suit unless he wishes to force 
him in trumps. It is, in fact, the old Whist call 
for trumps with a new meaning. Beginners must 
remember to make^ and to look out for it, 
H 2 



io6 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



(4) THE ECHO 

This call only applies when there are No 
Trumps, and is employed to show a strength of 
four or more cards in the suit your partner has 
led. It is effected in the same way as the call for 
a ruff, namely, by playing first an unnecessarily 
high card of the suit, followed by a lower one. It 
is not perhaps as important as the other conven- 
tions, but it is well to bear it in mind, should 
occasion arise for its use. 

Whatever system of discards you adopt, you 
should be careful, when playing against a No 
Trump call, to retain as long as possible at least 
one card of your partner's original lead. It may 
be, if he has led from a great suit, that it was 
established in the first round, but that he has no 
hope of getting the lead except in that suit. In 
any case it is a suit that is partly established in 
your favour, and hence is probably the best one 
to lead. 

Never, unless absolutely compelled, discard all 
the cards you have of an unopened suit. Should 



CALLING AND DISCARDING 107 

you do this, when you play void in the first round, 
the Dealer can locate every card in the suit, thus 
enabling him to finesse with certainty against the 
cards your partner has so carefully kept guarded. 
You may, moreover, find later from your partner's 
discards that this is the very suit he wishes you to 
lead should you get an opportunity. 

To discard correctly and to read accurately the 
meaning of your partner's discards is a matter of 
the greatest importance, and at the same time a 
matter of the greatest difficulty. Think of the 
number of times you could have saved the game 
in an adverse No Trump call if your partner had 
only led you the suit you wanted ! 



io8 



THE SPADE CONVENTION 

Comparatively recently the American idea of not 
playing out Spade hands has become more com- 
mon in this country. This custom consists of 
allowing the Dealer and his partner to score one 
odd trick in an undoubled Spade declaration, 
while each side scores its Honours without the 
hand being played out. If, however, either side 
has reached the score of twenty, or, as we have 
mentioned above, if the declaration is doubled, 
then the hand is played out in the ordinary way. 

As to the merits or demerits of this system 
there is little to be said, as it is largely a matter of 
individual taste. When there are players sitting 
out waiting to take their turn at the table, it has 
the advantage of saving time, and making shorter 
the periods of waiting. On the other hand, there 
is the undoubted disadvantage of the tendency to 
avoid Spade declarations and to launch out into 
unsound calls of higher value. 



log 



THREE-HANDED 
OR CUT-THROAT" BRIDGE 

At times a Bridge-party finds itself reduced in num- 
bers to three, and the following game is a by no 
means bad makeshift. The three players, Ay B, C, 
cut for deal ; the lowest deals, the next lowest sits 
on his left and the highest on his right, while a 
vacant seat is left opposite to the Dealer. 

The cards are dealt into four packets in the 
ordinary way. A, the Dealer, looks at his hand, 
and either makes the declaration himself or leaves 
it to his Dummy. The declaration is made from 
Dummy according to fixed rules — 

(1) If Dummy holds three or four Aces, he 

declares No Trumps. 

(2) Failing this, he declares his longest suit 

Trumps. In case of equality of length 
of two or more suits, the pips must be 
added up and the strongest suit declared. 
Each Ace counts eleven, each picture card 



no WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 

ten, and the other cards the number of 
their pips. In case of equality of length 
and strength, the highest in value of the 
equal suits is declared, i.e. (i) Hearts, 
(2) Diamonds, etc. 

Any points that the Dealer scores by tricks 
count to him below the line, while any he loses by 
tricks or otherwise count to each of his adversaries 
above the line. 

Each player reckons the value of one odd trick 
for each Honour he holds, while in No Trumps 
each Ace counts ten to the holder. The Dealer, 
of course, counts Dummy's Honours in addition 
to his own. Four or five Honours in one hand 
do not reckon more than four or five held 
separately. 

Inasmuch as the Dealer's adversaries, if they 
make the odd trick or more, only score this above 
the line, and not towards winning the game, 
doubling is practically non-existent. 

At the close of the hand, C moves to the vacant 
seat opposite to A, while B has the deal ; and so 
on, in turn. 

A player scores 50 for each game he wins, and 



''CUT-THROAT" BRIDGE iii 



the player who first wins two games scores an 
additional 50 for the rubber. 

Each player plays **on his own," i.e. it is per- 
fectly legitimate for one player to purposely allow 
the Dealer to make extra tricks at the expense of 
his temporary partner if it is to the particular 
player's own advantage to do so. For instance, 
B and Care playing against A. B has already 
won a game, has scored 28 towards his second 
game, and has the deal next. C has won one 
game and scored nothing towards his second, 
while A has not yet won a game. C would be 
perfectly justified in allowing A to win this game, 
in order to place him (C) and B on an equal footing 
towards winning the final game. 

Since the Dealer cannot rely on an intelligent 
call from Dummy if he leaves the declaration to 
him, and since any tricks he loses on his own deal 
count above the line to his opponents, he will often 
venture on very light No Trumps and red suit 
calls, or perhaps will call Clubs or even Spades 
himself rather than leave it to his partner, who 
may have to declare Hearts from five or even four 
small cards. 

A distinct disadvantage in this game is the 



112 WHY AND WHEREFORE OF BRIDGE 



rarity of the occasions upon which Dummy is able 
to declare No Trumps. This may be obviated by 
assigning to each of the Honours in Dummy's 
hand the following fixed values — 

Each Ace to be valued at 6 points, 
n King ,, 4 ,, 

,, Queen ,, 3 ,, 

)) Jack 2 
,, Ten ,, I ,, 

Snould the value of the hand total up to 20 
points, or should it contain three Aces, then 
Dummy declares No Trumps. This variation, 
although it makes the declaration rather more 
complicated, undoubtedly makes the game more 
interesting. 

We ourselves should like to suggest a slight 
further variation in the same direction, namely, 
that the Dealer, on leaving the declaration to his 
Dummy, should be allowed to state the minimum 
number of points on which No Trumps is to be 
called by him. 

Owing to only the Dealer being able to make 
points towards Game, a rubber is usually a pro- 
longed affair, and the points are considerably 



CUT-THROAT" BRIDGE 113 

higher than in the orthodox game. At the close 
of the rubber each player's points are added, and 
each player pays or receives the difference between 
his score and that of each of his adversaries. 



Third Edition. iSmo. Price 3^. 6d. net. 



With the New Laws of Bridge (1904), 
as adopted by the Portland and Turf Clubs. 

MODERN BRIDGE 

BY "SLAM." 

THE WORLD.— ''Wi\h 'Modern Bridge,' by 
*Slam,' it really seems that the good Bridge Book, 
for which the world has been so long waiting, has 
at last appeared. . . . This modest volume appears 
to us to rise like a safe little rock upon which the 
doubting Bridge player may take his stand in abso- 
lute security. ... * Slam ' is at once lucidly logical 
and convincingly clear." 



LONGMANS, GREEN, & CO., 
39 Paternoster Row, London, E.G. ; 
New York, and Bombay. 



PLYMOUTH 
WILLIAM BRENDON AND SON, LTD. 
PRINTERS 



